Ebola has everyone spooked. I read this afternoon that a Dallas health care worker who handled one or more lab specimens from the Liberian man who died from Ebola is...
Commentary: Ebola Has Everybody Spooked; They’re Even Calling Me With Questions Commentary: Ebola Has Everybody Spooked; They’re Even Calling Me With QuestionsDisruption Caused by Growth in Number of Temporary/Contingent Workers A few days ago, my close colleague, Robin Kobayashi, and I put the final touches on a new book, Workers’ Compensation...
Commentary: For Whom Are You Working? Ohio Court Creates Twilight Zone For Temporary Workers Commentary: For Whom Are You Working? Ohio Court Creates Twilight Zone For Temporary WorkersIn what is likely the last few days of the current term of the United States Supreme Court, an army of prognosticators are looking up from their tea leaves into...
Oooops! In Ruling on Collateral Estoppel Issue, What Does a Court Do if Its Earlier Decision Was Actually Wrong? Oooops! In Ruling on Collateral Estoppel Issue, What Does a Court Do if Its Earlier Decision Was Actually Wrong?What if an injured worker was legally prevented from discussing his or her medical condition directly with the worker’s doctor, if the worker was required instead to listen to the...
Florida Court Says PTSD Patient’s Ability to Communicate Directly With Psychologist is Not “Medical Necessity” Florida Court Says PTSD Patient’s Ability to Communicate Directly With Psychologist is Not “Medical Necessity”In what appears to be a case of first impression for any state appellate court, a New Mexico appellate court, in Vialpando v. Ben’s Automotive Servs., 2014 N.M. App. LEXIS...
New Mexico Court Orders Employer to Reimburse Worker For Medical Marijuana New Mexico Court Orders Employer to Reimburse Worker For Medical MarijuanaDue to the difficulties in attributing the cause of a heart attack to the claimant’s work, a number of states, including Nebraska, require the employee or the employee’s dependents to...
Nebraska Extends Heightened “Heart Attack” Causation Standard to Blood Clot and Embolism Nebraska Extends Heightened “Heart Attack” Causation Standard to Blood Clot and EmbolismWhen is the opinion of a board-certified (occupational medicine) physician, with years of experience and special training in the utilization of the AMA Guides, and who has performed numerous Impairment...
PA Court Refuses to Consider Independent, Board-Certified MD’s Opinion Because of Her Practice “Mix” PA Court Refuses to Consider Independent, Board-Certified MD’s Opinion Because of Her Practice “Mix”Reiterating the Minnesota rule that so-called “mental-mental” injuries–mental injuries associated with mental stimulus, as opposed to physical stimulus–are not compensable and that it is for the state’s legislature, and not...
Minnesota High Court Says PTSD is No “Brain Injury” Minnesota High Court Says PTSD is No “Brain Injury”Each year I read–or at least scan–more than 1,500 workers’ compensation cases that make the appellate reporter system around the nation. As large as that number sounds, it’s really fewer...
Compromise and Settlement: May An Employer Include a Penalty Clause to Ward Off Further Vexatious Claims? Compromise and Settlement: May An Employer Include a Penalty Clause to Ward Off Further Vexatious Claims?Last week, I was very pleased to be a part of an Orlando, Florida risk management conference sponsored by Artex Risk Solutions. Along with two good friends and colleagues, Rebecca...
Bariatric Surgery: Is it a Workers’ Compensation Medical Benefit? Bariatric Surgery: Is it a Workers’ Compensation Medical Benefit?The great majority of jurisdictions that have dealt with the issue, either by decision or statute, recognize the tort of retaliatory discharge for filing a workers compensation claim [see Larson’s...
Employers Face Possible Liability in “Pretaliatory” Discharge Cases Employers Face Possible Liability in “Pretaliatory” Discharge CasesUnder workers’ compensation law’s so-called “going and coming” rule, for an employee having fixed hours and place of work, injuries sustained en route to or from the workplace are generally...
Illinois: Workers’ Comp’s “Traveling Employee” Rule May Not Be Expanded to Tort Arena Illinois: Workers’ Comp’s “Traveling Employee” Rule May Not Be Expanded to Tort Arena