An Alexandria, Louisiana, physician pleaded guilty Tuesday to having conspired to violate three different federal statutes in connection with a kickback scheme to defraud both federal and private workers compensation insurers, according to an announcement by the U.S. Attorney’s office of the Western District of Arkansas.

A March 10, 2022, Pennsylvania Superior Court appellate decision underscores why the cost of workers’ compensation insurance for small businesses is the highest in the northeast United States.

The country’s insurance industry consists of an estimated 7,000 companies, collecting more than $1 trillion in premiums each year, according to the latest figures from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The law enforcement agency adds that because of its sheer size, the sector contributes significantly to the cost of insurance fraud by providing bigger opportunities and financial incentives to those committing illegal acts.

Wounds can be a major cost driver in workers’ compensation claims. The costs to treat these pressure injuries can quickly and easily run up to $100,000 or more, especially if an injured worker must be hospitalized or develops complications such as infections.

The former owner of a Peabody construction company was sentenced today in connection with a scheme to defraud the IRS of payroll taxes and to defraud his workers’ compensation insurance carrier by failing to disclose how many workers he employed.

A recent federal court ruling holding that a migrant farm worker’s death from COVID-19 fell within the scope of workers compensation law is part of a growing body of rulings that bar liability lawsuits related to the pandemic against employers.

I moderated a panel at the American Bar Association Mid-Winter Conference in New Orleans this past week. Our topic was concerning delays in treatment of compensable claims, with a look at the causes and consequences regarding both expense and outcomes for the industry.

While companies have made steady progress in reducing minor injuries and lost workdays, they are seeing less success in cutting down on serious injuries and fatalities, according to a new report.

A Florida appellate court on Wednesday ruled that an airport worker was not entitled to benefits for an injury that happened while walking through the terminal to a shuttle bus stop.

A Florida woman who said she was kidnapped, raped and thrown out of a vehicle last year has now been charged with insurance fraud.

An area of workers’ compensation that has grown in controversy over the years is when is an employee considered to be ‘at work.’ A question arises if an employee is injured when in a parking lot outside of their place of employment either starting their day or leaving after clocking out.

As a physician, I can’t help but view our industry through a distinctly patient-centered lens. Our very reason for existing is to help injured employees get well, ideally to get them back to their pre-injury status in days or weeks.

Four states in the first week of February introduced or moved forward on workers compensation presumption bills that would make post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental ailments compensable for first responders, in a continuation of a years-long legislative trend.

In McDonald v. Symphony Bronzeville Park, LLC, 2022 IL 126511, the Illinois Supreme Court issued an opinion finding the exclusive remedy provisions of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act (‘Compensation Act’) 820 ILCS 305/1 et seq. does not bar an employee’s claim for statutory damages under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (‘BIPA’), 40 ILCS 14/1 et seq.

An employee filed a class-action lawsuit against her employer for violating BIPA. Her employer required its employees to use a biometric timekeeping system in order to scan an employee’s fingerprint for purposes of authenticating an employee and tracking their time at work. The employee alleged that her employer never obtained her written consent to store her biometric information or informed her how the information will be stored.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has updated its Workers’ Compensation Medicare Set-Aside Arrangement (WCMSA) Reference Guide (Reference Guide). The latest version, Version 3.5, was published Jan. 10, 2022.