Self-insured employers facing the threat of COVID-19 workplace safety litigation could opt to accept infection workers compensation claims, as exclusive remedy clauses could provide better protection from expensive lawsuits later on, according to legal experts. “Liability is scary because there are no caps,” said Mike Fish, Birmingham, Alabama-based founding member of the comp defense firm Fish Nelson & Holden LLC…
More workers with lower back pain are receiving physical therapy to treat their workplace injuries, and that therapy is leading to shorter durations of disability and lower medical costs, according to a study released Tuesday by the Workers Compensation Research Institute. Researchers at Cambridge, Massachusetts-based WCRI examined 26,000 low-back workers comp claims with more than seven days of lost time…
A man claims an infection was misdiagnosed and left untreated by St. Elizabeth’s Hospital medical staff, resulting in permanent injury. Gerald Vardiman filed a complaint Aug. 20 in the St. Clair County Circuit Court against Kevin McCarthy, M.D., Michael Brazelton, P.A., Amanda Zhang, M.D., and St. Elizabeth’s Hospital of The Third Order of St. Francis, doing business as HSHS St….
A woman claims she suffered injuries when she slipped near a drinking fountain while visiting her physician’s office. Katherine Hunt filed a complaint Aug. 28 in the Madison County Circuit Court against Granite City Illinois Hospital Company LLC, alleging negligence. According to the complaint, Hunt alleges that while visiting her physician’s office on Sept. 11, 2018, in the Wolfe Building…
The surge in workers compensation “mega claims” of at least $3 million continues as medical treatments and technologies advance, according to research by ratings bureaus around the country. While mega claims comprise a statistically small percentage of all workers comp claims, claims are reaching the mega threshold more quickly, primarily because of the associated costs of technological advances in medicine….
A tenant at a Shiloh apartment complex claims she suffered severe brain injuries after falling on ice twice in February. Irma Cummins filed a complaint Aug. 10 in the St. Clair County Circuit Court against Greenmount Retail Center LLC, alleging negligence. According to her complaint, Cummins claims she was a resident at a multifamily apartment complex at Hartman Lakes in…
A mail carrier is suing Edwardsville homeowners after she allegedly fell off their porch and suffered injuries during a mail delivery. Ann Clayton filed a complaint Aug. 12 in the Madison County Circuit Court against Bryan and Carrie Andreas and CS Gems, alleging negligence. According to the complaint, Clayton alleges that on Aug. 17, 2018, she was delivering mail to…
“Mega” workers compensation claims from the construction sector comprised approximately 40% of large claims from 2001 to 2017, yet made up 20% of indemnity claims, according to research released Tuesday by six ratings agencies including the National Council on Compensation Insurance and the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California. Researchers analyzed comp claims that surpass $3 million in costs,…
Payments for outpatient facility services in workers compensation drove up the cost of medical payments per claim by 6.6% from 2014 through 2018, according to a report issued Thursday by the National Council for Compensation Insurance. Overall, the cost of medical payments per claim rose 7.5% during that period, NCCI reported. Comprising approximately one-fifth of medical costs, hospital outpatient payments…
After hundreds of pounds of metal studs rained from the sky during a construction project, the Indiana Court of Appeals has decided which companies can be held responsible for the injuries that subsequently occurred. On Aug. 24, the court found the general contractor can’t be found liable but left open the chance of a subcontractor paying for the injuries of…
