April 20, 2023

California Compensation Cases April 2023

CALIFORNIA COMPENSATION CASES Vol. 88, No. 4 April 2023 A Report of En Banc and Significant Panel Decisions of the WCAB and Selected Court Opinions of Related Interest, With a Digest of WCAB Decisions Denied Judicial Review CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE LexisNexis Online Subscribers: You can link to your account on Lexis+ to read the complete headnotes and court decisions, en banc decisions, writ denied summaries, panel...

April 20, 2023

California: Progressive Insidious Diseases

Here’s a brief summary of a recent noteworthy panel decision that addresses the issue of progressive insidious diseases. CA - NOTEWORTHY PANEL DECISIONS Copyright 2023 by Matthew Bender & Company, Inc. Elizabeth Arbogast , Applicant v. California Highway Patrol, legally uninsured, administered by State Compensation Insurance Fund, Defendants W.C.A.B. No. ADJ9509417—WCAB Panel: Commissioners Capurro...

April 12, 2023

California: Sleep Disorder and the AMA Guides

Here are our headnotes for a recent noteworthy panel decision on sleep disorder and the AMA Guides. CA - NOTEWORTHY PANEL DECISIONS Copyright 2023 by Matthew Bender & Company, Inc. Karen Miller , Applicant v. State of California, Ventura Youth Correctional Facility, legally uninsured, adjusted by, State Compensation Insurance Fund/State Contract Services, Defendants W.C.A.B. Nos. ADJ8181938, ADJ8702275—WCJ...

April 05, 2023

California: Claim Not Barred by Going and Coming Rule; Premises Line Rule Applied

In a recent noteworthy panel decision, the applicant’s injury was not barred by the “going and coming rule” because her claim fell within the premises line rule. Here’s our headnote and the PDF for the decision. Ricarda Duran, aka Sonia Tineo Toledo, Applicant v. Priority Workforce, Inc. dba MVP Payroll Financing LLC, LCF Priority Business Services Inc., United Wisconsin Insurance Company administered...

March 27, 2023

The Current Status of the Law on Medical Marijuana Reimbursement in Workers’ Compensation

By Albert B. Randall, Jr. & Samantha L. Schilling, Franklin & Prokopik, P.C., Baltimore, MD Although marijuana remains illegal under federal law as it is classified as a Schedule I drug in the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”), as of January 2023, 37 states, as well as the District of Columbia, have enacted state legislation allowing for the medical use of cannabis (hereinafter referenced as “medical marijuana...

March 27, 2023

California Compensation Cases March 2022

CALIFORNIA COMPENSATION CASES Vol. 88, No. 3 March 2023 A Report of En Banc and Significant Panel Decisions of the WCAB and Selected Court Opinions of Related Interest, With a Digest of WCAB Decisions Denied Judicial Review CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE LexisNexis Online Subscribers: You can link to your account on Lexis+ to read the complete headnotes and court decisions, en banc decisions, writ denied summaries, panel...

March 26, 2023

Castellanos: Rethinking the California Legislature’s Plenary Power Vis-à-vis Workers’ Compensation

By Hon. Susan V. Hamilton, Former Assistant Secretary and Deputy Commissioner, California Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board Article XIV section 4, California Constitution: The Legislature is hereby expressly vested with plenary power, unlimited by any provision of this Constitution, to create, and enforce a complete system of workers’ compensation, by appropriate legislation, and in that behalf to create and enforce...

March 20, 2023

CWCI Documents Recent California Workers’ Comp Professional Medical Service Treatment Patterns

Oakland, CA – A new study finds treatment patterns for California workers’ comp professional medical services have stabilized in recent years, with only minor changes in the utilization rates and volume of services rendered to injured workers within the first two years for indemnity claims with 2014 through 2019 initial treatment dates, and within the first six months for indemnity claims with 2018 through 2021 initial...

March 13, 2023

California: Does an Employer Have a Right to Remain as a Party Defendant?

When a worker sustains an industrial injury, the normal procedure is for that employee to file a claim. Next, the employer conducts proper administrative tasks and promptly alerts their insurer. The insurance company then takes the necessary steps to insert themselves into the litigation process in place of the employer and proceeds to defend the claim. Pursuant to Labor Code § 3755 , this “action” by the insurer releases...

March 07, 2023

California Jurisdiction over Industrial Injury Claims of Professional Athletes: The Saga Continues

By Hon. Susan V. Hamilton, Former Assistant Secretary and Deputy Commissioner, Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board The primacy of the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (“Appeals Board) over extra-territorial industrial injuries sustained by California residents is sacrosanct. In no uncertain terms, Labor Code § 5305 confirms the Appeals Board’s jurisdiction over all controversies over injuries sustained outside of...

March 01, 2023

Effect of Behavioral Health Issues on Injured Workers Returning to Work: Chronic Pain, PTSD, COVID-19 & More

By Joseph D. Dougherty, J.D. One of the primary goals of the workers’ compensation system is to return the injured worker to a productive life. And yet, this objective is sometimes lost with many state legislatures focused on reducing workers’ compensation costs. Addressing behavioral health care needs of workers is now more important than ever, given the surge in the most commonly occurring mental health problems for...

March 01, 2023

California Compensation Cases February 2023

CALIFORNIA COMPENSATION CASES Vol. 88, No. 2 February 2023 A Report of En Banc and Significant Panel Decisions of the WCAB and Selected Court Opinions of Related Interest, With a Digest of WCAB Decisions Denied Judicial Review CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE © Copyright 2023 LexisNexis. All rights reserved. LexisNexis Online Subscribers: You can link to your account on Lexis+ to read the complete headnotes and court...

February 28, 2023

CWCI Research Series Highlights Low-Volume/High-Cost Meds in California Workers’ Comp

Oakland, CA – Part I of a new California Workers’ Compensation Institute (CWCI) research series on low-volume/high-cost drugs used to treat injured workers in California spotlights a handful of Anti-Inflammatory and Anticonvulsant medications that account for a relatively small share of the prescriptions within their therapeutic drug groups, but that have become significant cost drivers by consuming a disproportionately...

February 28, 2023

California: Employment Status of Inmate Workers: How They Are Protected and How They Are Not

In December 2022, the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB) issued four panel decisions that defined the parameters for analysis of the employment status of inmate workers for the purposes of determining whether these inmate workers are entitled to the protections of workers’ compensation and other labor laws. ( Garcia, Castaneda, Chaparro v. County of Fresno (December 30, 2022) [ 2022 Cal. Wrk. Comp. P.D. LEXIS...

February 24, 2023

California: Treatment Outside the Medical Provider Network

A New Twist to a Perplexing Problem By Hon. Susan V. Hamilton, Former Assistant Secretary and Deputy Commissioner, Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board Ever since Labor Code section 4600 was amended authorizing employers to satisfy their obligation to provide medical care to their industrially injured employees through an established medical provider network (“MPN,” see Lab. Code §§ 4600 (c), 4616 ), there have been...

January 30, 2023

Long COVID Prevalence Among Workers: Impacts on Workers’ Compensation

By Hon. Susan V. Hamilton, Former Assistant Secretary and Deputy Commissioner, California Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board Three years ago we were just becoming acquainted with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. We hadn’t yet heard the terms, “long COVID,” “long-haulers syndrome,” or “post-acute COVID.” Today, we know that some patients infected with COVID-19 develop recurring or new symptoms weeks or months...

January 30, 2023

California Compensation Cases January 2023

CALIFORNIA COMPENSATION CASES Vol. 88, No. 1 January 2023 A Report of En Banc and Significant Panel Decisions of the WCAB and Selected Court Opinions of Related Interest, With a Digest of WCAB Decisions Denied Judicial Review CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE © Copyright 2023 LexisNexis. All rights reserved. LexisNexis Online Subscribers: You can link to your account on Lexis+ to read the complete headnotes and court decisions...

January 11, 2023

CWCI Study Tracks Trends in the Utilization of Inpatient Care in California Workers’ Comp

A new California Workers’ Compensation Institute (CWCI) study finds that after across-the-board declines in California inpatient hospitalizations during the COVID-19 heath crisis of 2020, the number of inpatient stays paid under Medicare, Medi-Cal, and private coverage all began to rebound in 2021, but the number of workers’ compensation hospitalizations fell an additional 5.7%. The latest results come from a CWCI study...

January 11, 2023

The Top 10 Bizarre Workers’ Comp Cases for 2022

© Copyright 2023 by Thomas A. Robinson, workcompwriter.com . All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission. As I have noted early each January for many, many years now, prior to the death of my mentor and friend, Dr. Arthur Larson, the original author of the oft-cited Larson treatises in workers’ compensation law (and in employment discrimination law, as well), Arthur and I began a quirky—though humorous—New Year’s...

January 11, 2023

California Compensation Cases December 2022

CALIFORNIA COMPENSATION CASES Vol. 87, No. 12 December 2022 A Report of En Banc and Significant Panel Decisions of the WCAB and Selected Court Opinions of Related Interest, With a Digest of WCAB Decisions Denied Judicial Review CONTENTS OF THIS ISSUE © Copyright 2022 LexisNexis. All rights reserved. LexisNexis Online Subscribers: You can link to your account on Lexis+ to read the complete headnotes and court...

January 11, 2023

California: Litigation Toolbox: Developing the Record When a Stroke Is Involved

Question: What do the injured workers listed below have in common? Answer: Each of these employees claimed a devastating industrial stroke. A review of these cases provides an opportunity to learn how to incorporate best practices for developing the record when an alleged work-related stroke claim is involved. Manuel Fagundes - Project manager sustained a specific injury (a carotid artery tear) resulting in a stroke...

January 03, 2023

New California WC Medical Mileage Rate For Travel On or After January 1, 2023

Oakland, CA – The mileage rate that workers' comp claims administrators pay injured workers for travel related to medical treatment or evaluation of their injuries will increase from 62.5¢ per mile to 65.5¢ per mile for travel on or after January 1, 2023, regardless of the date of injury.  The old rate of 62.5¢ per mile, which took effect last summer, still applies for travel from July 1 through December 31, 2022...

December 14, 2022

California: Supplemental Job Displacement Benefit Voucher Entitlement Litigation

Two Recent WCAB Panel Decisions and Key Issues to Consider Based on Evolving Case Law By Raymond F. Correio, Esq. Given the fact that settlement of Supplemental Job Displacement Benefits (SJDB) in the form of vouchers is generally not permitted except in very limited circumstances, an applicant’s right to claim SJDB vouchers after settlement of a case either by a Compromise and Release or Stipulated Award remains...

December 08, 2022

California: Top 25 Noteworthy Panel Decisions (July through December 2022)

LexisNexis has selected some of the top “noteworthy” panel decisions issued by the California Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board during the period July through December 2022. The “Top 25” list for the latter part of 2022 includes several new decisions addressing COVID-19 issues, including application of the Labor Code § 3212.86 COVID presumption and how defendant may rebut the presumption by showing an employee’s COVID...

December 06, 2022

California: A Roadmap for Litigating Incidents of Workplace Violence

I. Compensability of Workplace Shootings Workplace shootings have long held an interest among the workers’ compensation community. Perhaps not so much because of the complicated legal theories that must be untangled, but more because they often take root in alleged illicit relations amongst the parties involved. If the motive for murder is purely personal, unrelated to the employee’s work duties, does that factor alone...