Latest Workers' Compensation Headlines
All the headlines from our Workers' Compensation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
New York Bus Company Owner Charged with Shirking Workers’ Comp
Feb 12 2009 // An investigation by the New York State Insurance Department and Workers’ Compensation Board has led to charges against the owner of Yonkers bus service who failed to carry workers’ compensation insurance for...
Florida Approves 6.4% Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rate Hike
Feb 11 2009 // Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty has approved a 6.4 percent increase in workers’ compensation insurance rates. The increase applies to new and renewal business and will become effective April 1. The...
Vermont Weighs Expansion of Workers’ Comp
Feb 11 2009 // Vermont lawmakers will consider a bill that would extend workers’ compensation to cover mental and emotional problems suffered on the job. But the proposal is getting a cool reception from the insurance...
WIAA Insurance Services Adds Everest National as Workers’ Comp Carrier
Feb 10 2009 // Rancho Cordova, Calif.-based WIAA Insurance Services, the agency arm of the Western Insurance Agents Association (WIAA), has expanded its carrier portfolio with the addition of Everest National Insurance Co. for...
Louisiana: 1 in 5 Companies May Be Breaking Workers’ Comp Law
Feb 9 2009 // As many as one in five businesses in Louisiana may be breaking the law requiring them to insure their workers against accidents, so the state is stepping up enforcement, officials say. The Louisiana Workforce Commission...
Insurers’ Stocks Down 14%; Middle Market Carriers Active in Intermediary Acquisitions
Feb 8 2009 // Stock Price: Commercial lines stocks mirrored those of major indices in 2008, trading down 14 percent. Mergers & Acquisitions: Middle market carriers continue to be major players in the acquisition market as they look...
Texas Court Says Spouse Can Pursue Workers’ Comp Bad Faith Claim
Feb 6 2009 // The spouse of a workers’ compensation claimant may continue her bad faith complaint against Zurich American Insurance company over the insurers’ refusal to pay compensation benefits, a district court in Travis...
The Hartford Reports Loss for 2008, ‘Most Challenging’ Year in History
Feb 6 2009 // The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. reported a fourth quarter 2008 net loss of $806 million. For full year 2008, The Hartford reported a net loss of $2.7 billion, compared to net income of $2.9 billion in...
Oklahoma Bill Targets Political Donations of Workers’ Comp Attorneys
Feb 6 2009 // Legislation filed by Oklahoma state Rep. Dan Sullivan would ensure that unethical lawyers cannot siphon money from injured workers for political donations, according to the Oklahoma House of Representatives. “Lawyers...
North Dakota Bills Respond to Firings of Workers Compensation Whistleblowers
Feb 5 2009 // The dismissals of four employees who questioned how North Dakota’s workers compensation agency was being run showed a state law intended to guard against such firings is almost useless, a state senator believes. Sen....
Colorado Casualty Introduces Workers’ Comp in Nevada
Feb 5 2009 // Englewood, Colo.-based Colorado Casualty, a Liberty Mutual Agency Markets regional company, announced it has added workers’ compensation coverage to its commercial insurance product line in Nevada. “Bringing...
Michigan Blue Cross Wins Battle Over Workers’ Compensation Business
Feb 4 2009 // Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox is not giving up in his battle and will appeal a judge’s ruling in support of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan’s ownership of workers’ compensation insurance...
Wyoming Introduces Workers’ Comp Legislation
Feb 3 2009 // Legislation has been introduced in the Wyoming House that could hold oil and gas operators liable for their own negligence resulting in injuries and fatalities on their job sites in the state. House Bill 273, introduced by...
Ohio Workers’ Comp Bureau Worker Caught in Time Theft Probe
Jan 28 2009 // A state agency is reviewing the way it tracks how employees use the Internet after a report concluded that a worker remained undetected for years as he alternately viewed pornographic Web sites and did work for his...
Ohio Moves to Limit Swings in Workers’ Compensation Premiums
Jan 27 2009 // The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) board of directors has approved a rule that is expected to prevent spikes in workers’ compensation insurance costs for many employers. The cap on an...
Congressman Seeks National Review of State Workers’ Compensation Laws
Jan 27 2009 // Congressman Joe Baca, D-Calif., has introduced legislation that would authorize the creation of a National Commission on State Workers’ Compensation Laws. Baca’s National Commission on State Workers’...
Florida Signals 6.4% Workers’ Comp Rate Hike to Pay For Court Ruling
Jan 26 2009 // Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty said that he would approve a rate filing to increase Florida’s workers’ compensation insurance rates by 6.4 percent to be effective April 1 for new and renewal...
Michigan Advances Ergonomics Rule Over Business Opposition
Jan 25 2009 // Michigan regulators have taken preliminary votes to advance mandatory workplace ergonomics standards over the objections of the business community. The votes by the General Industry Safety Standards Commission and...
Labor, Trial Lawyers Criticize Kansas Workers’ Compensation System
Jan 25 2009 // Every day thousands of Kansans, such as Delbert Young of Wichita, go to work and perform tasks that require physical labor. For Young, it was riding a bicycle from building to building at the vast Boeing Co. facility to...
BrickStreet Writes Outside West Virginia; Drops Worst In-State Accounts
Jan 25 2009 // BrickStreet Mutual Insurance has written its first out-of-state policy. The policy, which went into effect Jan. 1, covers the employees of a West Virginia-based pipeline company working in the Commonwealth of...
