Workers’ compensation insurers aren’t getting the large aggregate volumes of COVID-related claims projected during the early months of the pandemic, but different data sources give varying readouts on developments for individual U.S. states and classes of workers. In fact, while claim frequencies are down for workers’ compensation overall with business shutdowns bringing lower numbers of non-COVID claims, and while the…
A woman claims water leakage and mold build up in her rental apartment caused injuries to her and her children. Ladonna Lawrence, individually and as mother of and next of friend of Darron Hill, Jr., and Micah Douglas, Jr., minors, filed a complaint Feb. 8 in the St. Clair County Circuit Court against Jenny and Skeet Huskey, Kunkel Wittenauer Group…
A bill filed in the Illinois General Assembly would transfer the responsibilities for investigating workers’ compensation fraud to the state insurance department. Under HB 2947, the pending business of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission’s Insurance Compliance Division would be transferred to the Illinois Department of Insurance. he change would transfer “all powers, duties, rights, responsibilities, personnel, books, records, papers, documents,…
Lawmakers in Illinois will consider making post-traumatic stress disorder compensable for certain first responders under a bill presented on Friday. H.B. 3081 states that “post-traumatic stress disorder is to be rebuttably presumed to arise out of and to be causally connected to the hazards of employment” for firefighters, emergency medical technicians, and paramedics. Lawmakers also read H.B. 3697, which states…
Brain-injury workers compensation claims cost more than double other types of lost-time claims, according to a report released Friday by the National Council for Compensation Insurance. The report said that among active claims between 2013 and 2018, 15% of permanent-injury total claims included a traumatic brain injury (TBI). A TBI is defined as physical trauma to the head that alters…
A woman claims Memorial Hospital Belleville and one of its surgeons failed to properly treat and diagnose her condition. Lauren Theuerkauf filed a complaint Feb. 4 in the St. Clair County Circuit Court against Eric Snook, DPM, Associated Foot Surgeons of Belleville LTD and Protestant Memorial Medical Center Inc., individually and doing business as Memorial Hospital Belleville, alleging negligence. According…
The Indiana Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would clarify the statute of limitations and increase benefits for injured workers receiving workers compensation. S.B. 220, which passed the state’s Senate in a 43-3 vote, would start the two-year statute of limitations for filing an application for the adjustment of claims on the last date a payment was made for…
Illinois lawmakers introduced a bill on Thursday that would clarify that injuries sustained by employees while traveling to and from work do not arise out of and in the course of employment except under a few circumstances. H.B. 2965 would modify existing statutes to clarify that an accident while traveling to and from the workplace is not compensable. The bill…
A bill giving Indiana businesses and others broad protections from lawsuits by people blaming them for contracting COVID-19 has been given final approval by state lawmakers. The Republican-dominated state Senate voted 39-7 to send the bill to GOP Gov. Eric Holcomb, who has endorsed the proposal. House members voted last week to approve the bill, which is a top priority…
A laborer who suffered second degree burns during an explosion at a Phillips 66 refinery is accusing the company of negligence. Michael Clark filed a complaint Feb. 1 in the Madison County Circuit Court against Phillips 66 Company, alleging negligence. According to his complaint, Clark was working as a laborer for GRP/Wegman at Phillips 66’s South Roxana refinery distilling unit…
