The California Division of Workers' Compensation has finally unveiled proposed new QME regulations.

The regs were posted on the DWC website today. Interested parties have awaited these regs for months.

The regs are in the public comment phase. Public hearings will be held on these in January 2008 in Los Angeles and San Francisco. If past experience is any guide, there will probably be revisions before final regs are adopted.

The proposed regulations are 113 pages, but you can view them or download them by clicking here:
http://www.dir.ca.gov/dwc/DWCPropRegs/q ... ations.pdf

I'll be covering this in more detail in future posts. Stay tuned.

Julius Young
www.boxerlaw.com
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In an advisory rate-finding decision sure to please California employers, Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner yesterday rejected the Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau's recommendation that insurers increase comp rates.

You can see the decision here:
http://www.insurance.ca.gov/0400-news/0 ... /Decision_

The WCIRB's forecasts have often been way off the mark. They're a gang that can't shoot straight. Once again, Poizner takes them to the woodshed. It's a script that will play well in his 2010 gubernatorial run.

But there are stories within stories.

Poizner notes the exceptional profitability of California's comp insurers at this time. He urges further premium reductions to pass along more savings to employers.

But Poizner makes no mention of the pitiful percentage of premium dollars paid for worker benefits. Here are some stats and charts to remind you about the scope of the problem:
http://www.workerscompzone.com/index.ph ... 518-115548

Stay tuned.

Julius Young
www.boxerlaw.com
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SCIF's Monday announcement that it will not be increasing its comp rates at this time puts added focus and pressure on Steve Poizner.

The State Compensation Insurance Fund announcement follows rate filings by a number of insurers (including Chubb) who plan to reduce comp insurance rates even further.

The Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau has called for a 5.2% average rate increase.

Take your pick. Increase or decrease.

Within the next couple of days, Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner will issue a recommendation on the "pure premium rate" for California workers' comp insurance. Poizner's findings aren't binding on insurers, but they do set the tone. The Commissioner's findings often are cited by the business press as a sign of the system's health.

Poizner, a near-certain 2010 candidate for governor, would be sending a strange signal if he recommends rate increases at a time that the state's largest insurer (SCIF) has recommended holding the line.

And that's without even considering that the system now delivers a pitiful percentage of premiums to disabled worker benefits.

For more information on all of this, see my blog posts:
"WCIRB Recommends Rate Hike"
http://www.workerscompzone.com/index.ph ... 024-095337
"California Workers' Compensation Fixed So That Insurer Profits Are
Greater Than Benefits Paid To Workers"
http://www.workerscompzone.com/index.ph ... 518-115548

Stay tuned. I'll be posting on the Poizner announcement.

Julius Young
http://www.workerscompzone.com/index.ph ... 518-115548
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Human behavior is a fascinating thing.

People lining up in the dead of night outside electronics stores for a chance to stampede for teaser deals. Long haul truckers taking philosophy classes downloaded into their iPods off of iTunes. We're all writers and editors now. There's an encyclopedia-Wikipedia.org-that everyone, everywhere is free to create and edit.

We live in an era where you can choose; you can create or you can grab stuff off the shelf.

So it is in comp. too. The California Division of Workers' Compensation has now shifted direction on implementation of post-surgical therapy limits.

Instead of drafting its own regulations, the DWC now intends to use the ODG guidelines on post-surgical therapy treatment.

For background on this, see my October 26, 2007 post "Implementing the Nava Bill":
http://www.workerscompzone.com/index.ph ... 026-102628

This is an issue of great importance for disabled workers who have surgery. The Nava bill (AB 1073) loosened the rigid limitations on therapy in post-surgical cases.

On November 20th, the DWC announced that it was adopting the ODG guidelines that are created by the Work Loss Data Institute. Those proposed guidelines are now available for public comment:
http://www.dir.ca.gov/dwc/ForumDocs/Pos ... ations.pdf

As of today there has been only one public comment. It's hard to believe, but during many "forums" on DWC's regulations there have been very few members of the public commenting. It would appear that injured workers and members of of the "comp community" aren't paying all that much attention to the regulatory process.

After the public comment period, these guidelines will go through the formal rulemaking process. Stay tuned.

You can subscribe to the blog by using the RSS buttons at the lower right hand menu bar.

Julius Young
http://www.boxerlaw.com/verdicts.html
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It's Thanksgiving. Being a lawyer has been good to me and most of my colleagues in the workers' comp field.

But perks?

The workers' comp industry doesn't have many perks. Yes, the occasional A's game ticket. And periodic educational junkets and forums. Not much else. You can only use so many pens and hi-liters from the logo merchandisers.

Silicon Valley paved the perk highway in the 90s.

Before the dot-com bust, Silicon Valley firms had on-site catered meals and Friday beer busts. A well-fed worker may work longer hours. In the tech world, it's part of the start-up culture. And some of that may be coming back with Web 2.0.

But leave it to the sharks to figure out major league perks.

Personal valet services to pick up the dry cleaning and fetch items from the hardware store or chase down concert tickets. On-site tailoring services. In-house psychologists and "personal coaches" to help you figure out your life.

Lunches featuring Spanish wines and sushi. Emergency nanny services. In house yoga classes. A nap room.

These are some of the tricks being used to "retain" top talent at some of the nation's large corporate law firms (NOT your workers' compensation lawyer, for sure). Apparently Gen X and Gen Next lawyers are having trouble committing to careers which pay big bucks in exchange for crushing billable hour requirements. They want a family, friends and a life.

It's hard to enjoy Thanksgiving stuck in the office working on the big merger and acquisitions deal. Thus, the focus on lavishing perks to keep these young sharks happy.

Think I'm making this up? Check out today's New York Times piece by Lynnley Browning:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/22/busin ... mp;ex=1195

Meanwhile, I wish my readers a Happy Thanksgiving. I hope you'll be able to spend some time with family and friends.

Here in the Bay Area, I'm looking at the azure-colored San Francisco Bay and a sliver of the Pacific beyond the Golden Gate.

It all looks pristine. From looking at it, you'd never know it had recently been befouled by a recent oil spill.

In many ways, that's much like workers' comp these days. Reforms were a success if the measure results in reduced costs for some employers. But the reforms have many darker aspects. I'll continue to explore the nooks and crannys of the system.

Julius Young
www.boxerlaw.com
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