Insurers Have Been Draining Funds from New Jersey’s Pensions for 15 Years
Report calls 2006 policy that shifted financial obligations for employee injuries to pensions ‘a windfall to insurers.’
Insurance firms have been siphoning off money from New Jersey’s pension funds for the past 15 years thanks to a policy decision that shifted financial obligations for employee injuries to pension funds, according to an investigation by acting state Comptroller Kevin Walsh.
A report on the investigation said that a 2006 policy adopted by the Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) encourages injured employees to accept continuing medical monitoring and coverage instead of cash settlements. The report said the approach, which puts the financial burden on pension funds to pay workers rather than on insurance firms, has provided “a windfall to insurers and financially harms the pension funds.”
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A long-standing loophole in workers’ compensation policy shifted “substantial” costs onto New Jersey’s already strained public employee pension system, according to a new report from a top state financial watchdog.
A precise estimate of the financial impact could not be determined, but the findings released on Thursday by the Office of the State Comptroller suggest insurance companies benefited the most from the loophole.
At the same time, the report determined the loophole effectively shifted more costs onto the pension system, which as of last year, was operating with a nearly $130 billion unfunded liability, according to estimates disclosed in recent state bond documents.
Study: 40 Out of 120 Texas Workers’ Comp Insurers Are ‘High Performers’ February 5, 2021
Forty workers’ compensation insurance carriers out of 120 assessed in Texas scored high enough to be placed in the “high performer” tier in a study recently released by state workers’ comp regulators.
The Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) in its 2020 Insurance Carrier Performance Based Oversight (PBO) assessment looked at the performance of 120 insurance carriers in five measures:
paying initial temporary income benefits;
processing initial medical bills;
submitting initial payment data by electronic data interchange (EDI); and
submitting medical bill processing data by EDI.
DWC reviewed 120 insurance carriers with the following results: 40 had scores placing them in the high performer tier, 76 were in the average performer tier, and four had a score placing them in the poor performer tier.
02/05/21
WorkersCompensation.com
San Francisco, CA (WorkersCompensation.com) - The California Division of Workers Compensation (DWC) is pleased to announce dates for its 28th annual educational conference. The conference will take place on a virtual platform from March 24-26, 2021. Sessions will also be available to view on demand through April 9, 2021 for registered participants.
This annual event is the largest workers compensation training in the state and allows claims administrators, attorneys, medical providers, return-to-work specialists, employers, human resources and others to learn firsthand about the most recent developments in the system, including any new laws or requirements. Speakers from the Division of Workers Compensation and the private sector will address topics pertinent to claims administrators, medical providers, attorneys, rehabilitation counselors and others involved in workers compensation.
No guarantees on workers’ comp COVID-19 changes
News Service of Florida
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A health care worker disinfects her hands as residents of Bergschenhoek, Netherlands, take part in a mass test of all of the municipality s 62,000 inhabitants starting Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2021, following a cluster of COVID-19 cases at an elementary school, including about 30 cases of the British coronavirus variant. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Senate will “look” at coronavirus-related workers’ compensation claims during this year’s legislative session, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee said Monday.
But Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg, made no promises the Senate would make changes to ensure front-line health care workers and teachers can tap into workers’ compensation benefits.