EHS Workers' Compensation News
Workers and 9/11 Responders Mourn Passing of Dr. Stephen Levin
Dr. Stephen Levin, former medical director of Mount Sinai Medical Center’s Irving J. Selikoff Occupational and Environmental Medical Center and a long-time advocate for workers, has died of cancer. He was 70 years old....
Workers' Comp Woes: Injured Workers and Opiate Addiction
A workers' compensation insurance holding company has established a narcotics program to address the problem of injured workers developing opiate addictions that make them unable to return to work in a timely fashion – or at all...
DJ Has to Face the Music for Workers’ Comp Fraud
Being the life of the party can have its drawbacks. Just ask a DJ from Austintown, Ohio, who was caught on tape entertaining party goers and bar patrons when he claimed he was so injured from a work-related incident that he could not work....
Businesses Benefit in Washington When Injured Workers Stay on the Job
Employers who help their injured workers stay on the job by creating or providing light-duty jobs for them may be eligible for reimbursement through Washington state’s new Stay at Work program. ...
Investing in Occupational Health Best Practices Improves Outcomes for Injured Workers
A new study of occupational health care in Washington state shows that improving medical care for injured workers can dramatically reduce lost work time. ...
Expert Offers Suggestions for Reducing Re-Injury and Returning Injured Employees to Work
Every employer has experienced a workers’ compensation claim that at first glance, seemed to be for a minor injury. As months and even years go past, the claim snowballs into full-fledged disability and the employer is left wondering what happened and if anything could have been done to prevent the high workers’ comp costs and the loss of quality of life for that employee...
Washington Drafts Standards for Medical Providers Who Treat Injured Workers
Washington's Department of Labor & Industries is taking the first step in creating a statewide network of providers to treat people with work-related injuries and illnesses, by seeking public comments on draft standards for health-care providers who treat injured workers. The new standards will apply to providers who treat injured workers covered by the state workers' compensation program as well as those covered by self-insured employers....
The Break Room: Making the Call
Pick up the phone and let injured workers know you care....
A Disposable Work Force: Farm Worker Advocates Push for Agricultural Worker Protections
A new report published by the advocacy organization Farmworker Justice criticizes the H-2A temporary guest work visa program, claiming it makes agricultural workers vulnerable to poor working conditions. Farm worker advocates argue that to improve these conditions, foreign agricultural workers should be able to seek legal immigration status...
The Billion-Dollar Ergonomics Opportunity
What would U.S. employers do with an extra billion dollars a month...
Rising Unemployment Rates Lead to Decrease in Workers’ Comp Coverage, Costs
According to a report released Aug. 16 by the National Academy of Social Insurance (NASI), workers’ compensation coverage and costs to employers have declined, a trend that likely can be attributed to the nation’s unemployment levels...
Following Back Injury Settlements, Some Workers Experience Escalating Life Disruptions
Workers who reach settlements for their work-related back injuries don’t necessarily experience physical, emotional or financial relief. According to a new study, these workers often endure escalating financial and domestic difficulties after they settle their claims...
Managing Workers' Comp: Taking the Stress Out of Heat
Even though resources are plentiful and the cost of prevention is minimal, every year, thousands of workers become sick from exposure to heat and some die...
Safety – A View from the Top
An employee’s amputation alerted this CEO to the fact that his company had some serious safety challenges...
Court Affirms OSHA’s Authority to Subpoena Workers’ Comp Co.
OSHA’s subpoena requesting inspection and report documents from Grinnell Mutual Reinsurance Co. associated with a fatal grain engulfment has been upheld in a U.S. district court...
The Human Dynamics of Injury Prevention: Three New E-Words for Occupational Safety
In this EHS Today exclusive, noted author, lecturer and educator E. Scott Geller, Ph.D., discusses three new “E-words” that allow companies to achieve continuous improvement in safety: Empowerment, emotion and empathy...
Workplace Workouts: Combating Employee Obesity
As the obesity epidemic continues to take a toll on our nation’s health, smart companies are recognizing that active, fit employees also are happy, productive employees...
Managing Workers’ Comp: Prequalifying Your Business Can Be Money in the Bank
Due to today’s economic conditions, more companies are looking for anything and everything they can do to give themselves a competitive advantage. Often that advantage can be the result of their experience modification factor (MOD)...
OSHA Withdraws Proposed MSD Column on Injury/Illness Logs
On Jan. 25, OSHA announced that it has temporarily withdrawn its proposal to restore a column for work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) on employer injury and illness logs, citing concerns from small businesses. Some safety stakeholders, however, expressed disappointment over the withdrawal...
Use the Nov. 18 Great American Smokeout to Help Employees Kick the Habit
Employers can foster a healthier workplace by motivating their employees to stop smoking for a day in honor of the American Cancer Society’s 35th annual Great American Smokeout on Nov. 18...
NIOSH Report Examines Opportunities, Challenges in Using Workers’ Comp Data
Opportunities for maximizing the use of workers’ compensation data for occupational safety and health surveillance and research – and challenges that researchers face in exploring those opportunities – are examined in a report of proceedings now available from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)...
Study: Resident Physicians Work Even While Ill
A new study reveals that three out of five resident physicians surveyed came to work in the previous year while sick, possibly exposing their patients and colleagues to suboptimal performance and, in many cases, communicable disease...
Report: Workers’ Comp Payments For Medical Care Exceed Cash Benefits for the First Time
Workers’ compensation payments for medical care and cash benefits for U.S. workers injured on the job increased 4.4 percent to $57.6 billion in 2008, according to a study released Sept. 9 by the National Academy of Social Insurance (NASI). For the first time, medical benefits accounted for over half (50.4 percent) of all benefits paid...
Proper Use of PPE and Its Relationship to Workers' Comp Costs
Travel through any workplace in America and you most likely will find yourself in the middle of a virtual minefield of hazards, coming in all shapes and sizes...
DOL Awards Amtrak Employee $160,000 in Retaliation Case
On Aug. 26, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) ordered Amtrak to pay employee Nicole Anderson $60,000 in compensatory damages and $100,000 in punitive damages for the retaliation she experienced after reporting an on-the-job injury...
