State Regulator Addresses Workers’ Compensation Claims Review
Many health insurance companies have "gone too far" in questioning medical evaluations by doctors and delaying treatment for workers' compensation claimants, the acting administrative director of the Division of Workers' Compensation said Wednesday, the Sacramento Bee reports.
Acting Administrative Director Carrie Nevans at a special hearing of the Senate Labor and Industrial Relations Committee said officials are developing new penalties in the form of $5,000 fines against insurers that improperly reject treatment for injured workers.
Critics of workers' compensation reforms enacted in 2004 claim insurers follow the standards too rigidly and deny necessary care even for permanently injured workers.
The state also will create a special committee to consider expanded workers' compensation guidelines to cover areas including chronic illness and chiropractic care (Chan, Sacramento Bee, 5/4).