Veto SB 50A Letter to Gov. Bush from Mary Bailey June 20, 2003

Governor Bush,

Injured workers appeal to you to veto the workers compensation bill SB 50.

This bill does nothing to help small businesses in this state, further harms injured workers, and does nothing but put more dollars in the insurers pockets. It has also been shown that the actuary agency NCCI skews their figures in which they base premium increases on to benefit the insurance carriers.

Please in the name of justice do not approve a bill that is so deeply flawed, takes so much away from injured workers, and is based on figures that no one has been able to verify. There is at the very least a hint of conflict of interest in the NCCI figures.

This bill violates the rights of injured workers and their families and stacks the deck for insurers to continue to deny and delay much needed medical care and benefits. The insurers are the cause of this crisis and it is obvious to everyone in this state. SB 50 A basically declares class warfare on the working class of this state. I have proposed some suggestions that would have corrected and diverted the workers compensation crisis without additional costs to the system.

I implore you to review how the insurers suggestions never reduce premiums regardless of how much you take away from injured workers and businesses of this state. Look at the promises given with the reform that took place in 1994. That was supposed to help keep premiums down but instead we again find ourselves in a crisis.

Injured workers have asked for nothing but that you enforce the existing law. Who else has come to the table and asked you for nothing? Please listen to the voice of reason and do not further penalize injured workers for having the misfortune of getting hurt at work.

If you are truly in office to represent all the people of this state you will veto the bill. Remember even the little people should have the same rights as the rich and powerful.
The insurers are the true cost drivers of the workers compensation system in this state and we can prove it if you give us the opportunity.

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Below are some common sense reforms that will really correct the comp crisis without adding expense to our already overloaded budget.

1. Enforce the law.

2. Allow petitions for benefits to be amended to add new complaints of denials as long as there is time for discovery and the case has not been mediated. This would eliminate many petitions for benefits, court dates, mediations, as well as attorney involvement and reduce number of cases the Judges of Compensation Claims has to hear. Obviously if several issues are heard at one time it will save both time and money.

3. When an employer/carrier fails to deny benefits for the injured worker in the 120 day period given by law unless there is clear and convincing evidence that some kind of fraud has been committed by the injured worker or some kind of clear and convincing evidence that the injured workers condition has improved enough for him/her to return to some kind of employment, the employer/carrier should not be able to deny any medical or indemnity benefits. There is law on this but it is not often enforced. The State itself is contributing to the rising costs of Workers Compensation premiums.

3. Since the employer/carrier gives the injured workers a very limited list
of medical service providers they should not be allowed to contest the treatment, medications, or therapies prescribed by their own doctors they require the injured worker to see.

4. The employer/carrier should not be allowed to send an injured worker miles out of their way to a medical facility when there is a qualified workers compensation doctor much closer. This would save on mileage reimbursement to those who can drive their own vehicles and much more on the costs it takes to transport injured workers because they cannot drive or do not have transportation. Again the state is contributing to the high Workers Compensation premiums by not enforcing the law.

5. Requirements for the injured worker to resign as part of a settlement agreement should not be allowed because it is against the law. Again this law is not enforced.

6. Carriers should not be allowed to send injured workers to any facilities or use any transportation companies that they may have an interest in financially.

7. The State should not consider making any changes or new laws for the Workers Compensation system until they are able to enforce the old ones. They have no idea how the present Workers Compensation System works until they enforce the law and it is futile to make new laws that most likely will not be enforced. You cannot fix a system until you know what is wrong with it and you cannot know what's wrong with it until you enforce the law.

8. Adjusters, case managers, or nurses should not be allowed to over ride a doctors treatment plan. They are not medical doctors and they often prolong the recovery time for an injured workers by making these denials. Many times they are not even in the same state as the injured workers and have not even had a discussion with the treating physician.

There is overwhelming evidence at the Department of Insurance or the Division of Workers Compensation that carriers frequently disregard the law and do as they please. The evidence of this is the number of complaints they receive that are justifiable complaints. The number of complaints could be easily tracked and the carriers that violate the law would stand out easily if the carrier was flagged every time there was a complaint. When a reasonable number of legitimate complaints are flagged against a specific carrier they should be investigated and if found guilty of ignoring the law be penalized severely to deter this kind of practice.

Mary Bailey
President, VOICES Inc.
Crs012001@cs.com

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