Image via WikipediaStudies of workers in two US cohorts of asbestos textile workers exposed to chrysotile (North Carolina (NC) and South Carolina (SC)) found increasing risk of lung cancer mortality with cumulative fibre exposure. However, the risk appeared to increase more steeply in SC, possibly due to differences in study methods. The authors conducted pooled analyses of the cohorts and investigated the exposure-disease relationship using uniform cohort inclusion criteria and statistical methods.
Increased rates of lung cancer were significantly associated with cumulative fibre exposure overall and in both the Carolina asbestos-textile cohorts. Previously reported differences in exposure-response between the cohorts do not appear to be related to inclusion criteria or analytical methods.
Risk Roundup – Political Calculations blog hosts this week’s Cavalcade of Risk, replete with a post rating system. Check it out.
Florida repackaged drugs issue redux – Dave DePaolo posts about a new effort to put a price cap on Florida’s repackaged drugs. He posits that changing economic and regulatory conditions might create a more favorable climate for passage. He also talks about how “capping the price of drugs has been hotly contested by the Florida Medical Association (FMA) and a company called Automated Healthcare Solutions (AHCS).” AHCS is a firm whose executives have contributed heavily to politicians to prevent such legislation. A Tampa Bay news report talks about how the state’s pill mill crackdown was held up by proponents of doc dispensing, including AHCS principals: “The two Miramar workers’ compensation doctors have helped pump about million into the political system through a dozen companies in the past year.” A story in the Florida Independent covers an earnings report for top lobbyists, noting that, “Among the companies to have spent the most on lobbying is Automated HealthCare Solutions, a group whose co-chairmen have become fixtures on the political scene. According to the Current, Automated HealthCare has posted minimum lobbying expenditures greater than 0,000.” For more on why repackaging controls are needed, see Joe Paduda’s posts: Drug Dispensing by Docs and Repackagers and the myth of AWP.
The big five – Roberto Ceniceros reports that Top 5 workplace injury causes make up 72% of direct workers comp costs, according to a research report by Liberty Mutual Group. “Overexertion–or injuries caused by lifting, pushing, pulling, holding and carrying–costs businesses .5 billion in direct annual expenses and accounts for more than 25% of the national burden.” This was followed by falls on the same level, falls to a lower level, bodily reaction, and struck by object.
Violence in Nursing – In When it hurts to help, Victoria Ison reports on workplace violence in nursing. Many might assume most violence is perpetrated by patients or intruders but not so: “Assistant nursing professor Cindy Thomas said the most common form of violence currently seen in health care occurs between nurses. She said violence between physicians and nurses is second, and violence between patients and nurses is actually third most common.”
Strange suits – Top 10 Bizarre Workers’ Comp Cases for 2011. From an eye-related injury after hitting a bowling ball with a sledge hammer to a fall from a helicopter while attempting to capture a deer with a net – read Thomas Robinson’s picks for workers comp lawsuits with strange circumstances. Robinson reminds us that, “one must always be respectful of the fact that while a case might be bizarre in an academic sense, it was intensely real, affecting real lives and real families.”
Brief takes
- New OSHA page targets winter storm-related injuries
- What to expect when you’re expecting the Department of Labor
- Protecting Porn Workers Part II: Watch Where You Point That Thing”
- Insurer Sues Google in Alabama Over Unflattering Search Results
- Bans on Smokers in the Workplace Continues
- Supreme Court will review case on FMLA and state immunity
- Lady Gaga’s former personal assistant sues pop star for overtime pay
- Behind the [NYC pharmacy] Counter, an Acute Anxiety
- Report Says Mafia Now ‘Italy’s No.1 Bank’ as Economic Crisis Bites
- Bungee jump gone wrong – not work related, but just yikes
Pacific International Marketing (“Pacific”) is working with the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) and California Department of Public Health to coordinate a recall of Cilantro for potential contamination with Salmonella. FDA has advised that a sample of Pacific Cilantro has tested positive for Salmonella. A total of 6,141 cartons of Cilantro are being recalled.
Salmonella is an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis.
The product is distributed in Pacific International Marketing cartons of 60 bunches, 30 bunches and 20- 3 bunched sleeves. The product is bunched cilantro with “Pacific” on the twist tie and the UPC code, which is 33383 80104. The UPC code for sleeves is 40695 80104. The product was distributed in California, Arizona, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Indiana, South Carolina, and Missouri through retailers. Consumers should return cilantro purchased after November 16th but before December 10th. The carton codes are as follows:
19 78
111411
19 78
111811
19 84
111811
19 94
111811
19 78
111911
19 84
111911
19 94
111911
19 78
No Illnesses have been reported to date. The recall is the result of a positive FDA Salmonella test taken at the distributor level. The product originates from Salt River Farming, located in the Phoenix, Arizona area. The source of contamination is unknown.
Consumers who have purchased the cilantro are urged to return it to the place of purchase for a full refund. Customers can also contact Pacific International Marketing at 831 755 1398 from 8:00 am PST to 5:00 pm PST Monday through Friday or by mail to: P.O. Box 3737, Salinas, CA 93912-3737
Our favorite “down under” blogger Russell Chatswood has posted the latest and greatest issue of Cavalcade of Risk at his Chatswood moneyblog. Now despite the mild weather we are enjoying right now in the northeastern U.S., we are envious of Russell’s blooming garden, as evidenced by the photos in the post. And beyond the flora and fauna, there is your garden variety biweekly grab bag of risk-related posts from around the blogosphere. Check it out.
David Williams of Health Business Blog hosts the biweekly roundup of posts in the Insurance Fest Edition of Cavalcade of Risk. Check it out! Plus, poke around David’s blog – lots of good information, such as his recent posts on What does an Explanation of Benefits (EOB) actually explain and part 2.
The elephant in the room – Last week, my colleague reported on several issues and trends under discussion at the WCRI Conference. One of the key issues that has attracted some media attention is Richard Victor’s conference summary about the elephant in the room – employment. Insurance Journal’s Andrew Simpson has more on the tough challenges that face the workers’ comp system in the coming years as we cope with the “unprecedented disruption of the labor market.”
Ghosts of crises past… – Peter Rousmaniere recalls the workers comp crisis of 1991 private sector markets in some states came close to collapsing. He discusses ensuing legislative reforms and changes in employer and claims payer practices, which are are still making their impact known in today’s market.
Meanwhile, in England… – Jon Gelman notes that Britain’s Department of Work and Pensions has concluded that the principle of “no fault” should be eliminated from the workers’ comp system. “In a review published next week there are calls for a ‘rebalancing’ of safety laws and a dramatic reduction in the number of rules in the workplace.” Jon notes that our US system was modeled after Britain’s.
California Network Utilization Study – If California proves to be the national pacesetter that it so often is, look for network utilization to increase. According to a recent study by the California Workers’ Compensation Institute (CWCI), the use of Physician Networks in California workers’ comp is at a record high. Network physicians now provide more than 75% of all first year physician-based treatment, and receive two thirds of the dollars paid for physician-based services rendered in the first year. You can download the full report (and other reports too) from the CCWI Research page.
Dental claims – If you think it’s difficult to find a physician who understands workers comp issues, how about a dentist? At Risk Management Magazine, Laura McClain explores some of the complexities involved in dental claims, such as the fact that the average dental claim requires 17 dental provider visits. She notes that risk managers generally rely on their PPOs to manage dental injuries, but suggests that because these claims require a more specialized approach, risk managers need to give them special attention.
Essential Functions – We couldn’t find a better example of why it’s important to document the essential functions of a job that the recent case that Jon Hyman Of Ohio Employers Law Blog discusses in his post, “SAY IT! SAY IT!” Yelling as an essential function. Hyman’s take away for employers: “Just because the ADA (as amended by the ADAAA) renders virtually every medical condition a protected disability does not render employers defenseless. Essential functions come in all shapes and sizes. When handling an accommodation request from a disabled employee, do not omit consideration of all facets of the job.”
US Road Casualties Mapped – Transportation related accidents are not only one of the leading causes of work-related fatalities in the US, they are one of the leading causes of death, period. Between 2001 and 2009, 369,629 people died on US roads. Now, courtesy of the Guardian’s Data Blog, you can see US traffic fatalities – every one mapped across America for those years on an interactive map. You can zoom in to search by your location. (Thanks to Liz Borowski at the always excellent Pump Handle for the pointer).
Cool Tool – NIOSH offers a Noise Meter shows how long it takes before a particular sound level becomes dangerous to the human ear. You can listen to the sounds and sound intensities of everyday objects. It’s an interesting little toy to share with workers to call attention to prevention efforts. Also see the other NIOSH resources on noise and hearing loss prevention.
Still an important health issue… – omorrow is World HIV-AIDS Day. The CDC has a good workplace resource: Business and Labor Responds to AIDS, which includes info on policy development, supervisory training materials, and educational materials.
News of Note
- DOT Bans Hand-Held Cell Phone Use by Drivers of Buses and Large Trucks
- Save a Life: Recognize the signs of a stroke – STR
- Scent Free Workplaces – resources from the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety
- Skeletons and plague pits are grisly and surprisingly frequent finds in major construction projects – interesting item from Lloyds
- Georgia Factory Worker Sues After Being Fired for Refusal to Wear ’666′
- Master the New Gmail with These Tips, Shortcuts, and Add-Ons
- Extreme holiday decorating & electrical safety
Insurance Writer Nancy Germond hosts this week’s edition of Cavalcade of Risk and she has a seasonal theme: The Turkey Edition. Check it out.
Reminder – Tomorrow is Great American Smokeout day. More than 46 million Americans still smoke and if some of them are your employees, it is likely that smoking is taking a financial toll on your organization. It’s not too late to remind your employees: here are some printable tools, or you can just email a reminder about 1-800-QUIT-NOW, a free smoker’s quit line.
Wellness – Speaking of smoking or any other so-called lifestyle issue that is related to employee health, Roberto Ceniceros recently tackled the topic of wellness programs being adapted for workers comp in an article in Business Insurance, as well as at his blog. He notes a trend toward integrating wellness benefits into workers comp programs, which “…requires employers to transcend traditional corporate silos that typically separate risk management and workers compensation departments from those administering health benefits and nonoccupational disability plans.”
Sandy Blunt update – Joe Paduda recently featured a post on progress in clearing Sandy Blunt’s name. North Dakota Supreme Court’s disciplinary board has recommended that Cynthia M. Feland, the prosecutor in the Blunt case and now a judge, should have her attorney’s license suspended for 60-days and be required to pay court costs related to her failure to “… disclose to Michael Hoffman, defense attorney for Charles Blunt, the Wahl memo, and other documents which were evidence or information known to the prosecutor that tended to negate the guilt of the accused…” Next step, new trial? (For more background, see A Good Man Wronged). We had a chance to catch up with Sandy at the Las Vegas Work Comp Expo at the Medata reception. Sandy is serving as Vice President of Insurance Services with Cy King and crew. (Side note: if you are ever invited to a Medata reception, say yes. Three words: “nice people” and “yum.”)
Other notes from last week’s Las Vegas Workers’ Comp Expo – Kudos to Peter Rousmaniere, who collaborated with Sedgwick to produce a great video on the history of workers comp – we’ll bring it to you as soon as it’s available online.
Our fellow blogger Joe Paduda kicked off the show with an informative opening general session, part of which was a Point/Counterpoint style sparring between Joe and David North of Sedgwick and Davidson Pattiz of Zenith about pricing and billing transparency. You can see Joe’s reports from Vegas here and here.
Evan Falchuk was part of a panel on expert physicians. Falchuk is President and Chief Strategy Officer of Best Doctors, an organization that has been making quite a splash on the healthcare side. (Check out Falchuk’s blog, See First). While not as widely known as their general healthcare services, Best Doctors also offers services in the workers comp arena, which include help for legacy claims, complex care claims, and cases involving chronic pain, among other services.
Chris Brigham of Impairment Resources made an impassioned presentation on how we can and should be making a commitment to prevent the needless disabling of injured workers. He and his team were also exhibiting, side by side with their partner firm and our neighbor, Insurance Recovery Group, who were touting their subrogation services.
Other sightings: Colleague Jim Paugh was representing his new predictive analytics endeavor, WorkersComp Analytics; Mark Walls was the man of the hour, moderating sessions and hosting a reception for members of his popular linkedIn Work Comp Analysis Group; We also spotted Bob Wilson, another online pioneer, and were fortunate to spend time with Helen Knight of King Knight Communications, arguably the best PR person in workers comp; and a shoutout to Frank Pennachio (erstwhile guest poster) and Susan Toussaint of Work Comp Advisory Group, who we finally met in person. Finally, congrats to Nancy Grover, program chair, along with all the advisors and staff of LRP and Risk & Insurance for putting on a good conference.
Van R. Mayhall of Insurance Regulatory Law makes his debut as host of Cavalcade of Risk with his “Meet the Experts” edition. Mayhall is an expert himself – an attorney who practices in the areas of Business & Corporate Law and Insurance Regulatory Law. We welcome his participation!
Workers Comp Conference – Nancy Grover offers a sneak peek at highlights of the National Workers’ Compensation and Disability Conference & Expo which is on the docket for November 9 and 10 in Las Vegas. You can follow more about upcoming conference events on LinkedIn’s National Workers’ Compensation and Disability Conference & Expo Group.
Maximizing wellness program ROI – According to a post by Preston Diamond in Risk Management Monitor, “On average, employers can see a 30% reduction in Workers’ Compensation and disability claim costs, according to a review of 42 published studies involving the economic returns of wellness programs. Moreover, wellness programs will reduce the costs of absences that, according to the 2010 Kronos/Mercer Survey on the Total Financial Impact of Employee Absences, add up to 8.7% of payroll costs, more than half the cost of health care.” But experts caution that all wellness programs are not equal so employers need to implement with care. See 5 Steps Companies Should Take Before Launching a Wellness Program.
Performance Standards & Disabilities – Employment law attorney Daniel
Schwartz posts an FAQ on Applying Performance Standards to Employees with Disabilities. He notes that although the ADA affirms an employer’s right to define jobs and to evaluate employees according to consistently applied standards governing performance and conduct, it’s a case where the devil is in the details. But he links to some lesser-known EEOC guidance on the matter that helps to address some common questions.
High costs of excessive alcohol consumption – According to a new study on the costs of excessive drinking by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the cost of excessive alcohol consumption in the United States in 2006 reached 3.5 billion, which translates into about .90 per drink or 6 per person. Researchers also pointed out that 72% or the total costs could be attributed to losses in workplace productivity.
Is Ohio drinking the tea? – Looking at some ballot issues in Ohio, Roberto Ceniceros asks if a tea party initiative could end workers’ comp. He cites a Toledo Blade editorial which argues that although the intent of the measure is to thwart the health-care reform law, it may open the door to some unintended consequences.
A picture is worth a thousand words – The Geography of a Recession is an animated view of U.S. unemployment from 2007 to 2011. Hat tip to Workplace Prof Blog for the pointer.
Lift Gates – Tony Jones of the MEMIC Safety Blog offers a good overview on safety considerations related to lift gates, including equipment considerations, pre-operations, operations, and special considerations.
News briefs
- World Series Throws Risk Managers a Curve
- The Employer’s Bill of Rights
- Simple Solutions for Office Hazards
- Oct. 16-22 Is National Teen Driver Safety Week
- OSHA gathering info on hearing loss prevention
- A Year Out of the Dark in Chile, but Still Trapped – followup on Chilean miners
- 10 Tips for Encouraging PPE Compliance
Risk roundup – Jay and Louise Norris of Colorado Health Insurance Insider host this week’s Cavalcade of Risk – it’s the Colorado nature edition. Congrats to the Norrises on their 5 year blogging anniversary and 10th issue hosting the Cavalcade.
Check the facts – At Comp Time, Roberto Ceniceros tells the
story of an insurer relying on a newspaper’s crime report as the basis for denying a claimant’s workers comp benefits. While this situation might seem like one that wouldn’t surface all that often, we’d make the case that it is a cautionary tale for anyone who is using social media as an investigative tool.
Culture of Caring – Dave DePaolo has an interesting post on how the culture of caring relates to a workplace where the turnover rates are high, like fast food joints. Is high-touch communication and an early return-to-work model as effective when turnover is 120%? We’d note that high turnover is not only an impediment to return to work, it’s no doubt also a factor in the number of injuries that occur. New, untrained workers have more injuries. The Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that more than 40% of work-related injury claims are filed by workers who have been on the job for 12 months or less, and a NIOSH study found that employees 24 years old or younger are two times more likely to suffer a nonfatal injury than their older co-workers.
Medical Costs – In our last news roundup, we linked to the Kaiser Family Foundation’s recent report that average family benefits premiums are up 9%. Joe Paduda of Managed Care Matters offers his thoughts on why premiums are up so much when medical costs are flat.
Workplace Violence – Michael Fox of Jottings by an Employer’s Lawyer posts about OSHA’s new directive on procedures for investigating workplace violence complaints. He notes that two industry groups get singled out for particular focus: Healthcare and Social Service Settings and Late-Night Retail Settings.
Anniversary of Patel Memo – At Lexis-Nexis, Robin E. Kobayashi commemorates the 10 year anniversary of the Patel Memo. Bonus points to you if you know what the Patel memo is. Here is a clue: it launched an entire workers comp-related industry.
Case to watch – The EEOC is suing Texas-based BAE Systems for violating the ADA by firing a man who weighed 680 pounds. The man had worked at his job for 16 years and had logged good performance evaluations. The intersection of obesity and the ADA is one to watch.
When light duty runs off the rails Safety News Alert discusses a case of a worker who returned to work on light duty. While on light duty, he received partial disability benefits because the job didn’t pay as much as his previous position. But the employee had trouble getting along with his supervisor and asked to be laid off – which the employer granted. The employee then applied for full work comp benefits. Check out the court’s decision.
New blog Well, new to us. TexasM Mutual Insurance Company’s blog has been up and running for about 15 months now, but we just discovered it via our Twitter feed. There are some good posts, particularly some good safety information. Texas Mutual Insurance Company is the state’s leading provider of workers’ compensation insurance, with approximately 32 percent of the market. (And remember, Texas is a state where private employers can choose whether or not to carry workers’ compensation insurance coverage.)
Also of interest…
Cavalcade of Risk – The Terrorism, CyberWar, Floods, Bad Mortgages, Robberies, Investment Losses and Disease Edition of Cavalcade of Risk is hot off the press and posted by Jaan Sidorov at Disease Management Care Blog. Check it out!
Tribute to Workers – A few weeks ago, we made a 9/11 memorial post, which focused heavily on the event, the aftermath, and the losses. More recently, we came upon an excellent New York Times feature that focuses on portraits and stories of workers who are rebuilding the World Trade Center, the largest construction project in the United States. It’s a positive testament to the future, to resilience, and to some great American workers. The rebuilding effort has employed 3,200 workers. NYT features more about the WTC rebuilding project.
Student Athletes? – Jared Wade posts about how the NCAA Has Used the Term “Student-Athlete” to Avoid Paying Workers Comp Liabilities – part of a longer article that The Atlantic featured on college sports. Wade notes that, “For our purposes, however, the most interesting excerpt chronicles the how and the why of the NCAA’s creation and widespread promotion of the term “student-athlete.” According to Branch, the main reason that former NCAA head Walter Byers, in his own words, “crafted the term student-athlete” and soon made sure it was “embedded in all NCAA rules and interpretations” was because it was an excellent defense against being held liable for workers compensation benefits that those injured in athletic competition could seek.”
Prescription Drugs – NCCI has issued Workers Compensation Prescription Drug Study: 2011 UPDATE (PDF), a 31 page report. The key findings:
*The indicated Rx share of total medical is 19%; this is slightly higher than the estimate given in our 2010 update
*OxyContin climbs from the number 3 WC drug in Service Year 2008 to number 1 in Service Year 2009
*Hydrocodone-Acetaminophen drops from the top WC drug in Service Year 2008 to number 3 in Service Year 2009
*Recent overall cost increases are driven more by utilization increases than by price increases
*Physician dispensing continues to increase in Service Year 2009 in almost every state
*Increased physician dispensing is associated with increased drug costs per claim *Per-claim Rx costs vary significantly by state
At Managed Care Matters, Joe Paduda offers his educated observations on the pharmacy study.
Agricultural worker protections – Laura Walter of EHS Today writes about A Disposable Work Force: Farm Worker Advocates Push for Agricultural Worker Protections. Her article focuses on a new report published by the advocacy organization Farmworker Justice which criticizes the H-2A temporary guest work visa program. The report claims that it makes agricultural workers vulnerable to poor working conditions. Farm worker advocates argue that to improve these conditions, foreign agricultural workers should be able to seek legal immigration status.
Battle of the giants – In catching up on a backlog of blog reading, we find a post from Roberto Ceniceros’ Comp Time of great interest. It focuses on the battle of the giants chronicling the ongoing dispute between two workers’ comp behemoths, AIG and Liberty Mutual. The dispute is being fought in court, and now in the court of public opinion via dueling websites.
Hunt for misclassification is getting muscle – The Department of Labor and the IRS will be teaming up with other federal agencies and the labor departments of 11 states to share information that will help to track down employers that misclassify workers. For more on this, see Jon Gelman’s post, US Dept of Labor Moves Aggressively on Misclassification of Employees and Dave DePaolo’s post One Way to ID Scofflaw Employers: IRS Co Op
Social Media – The more we use Twitter, the more we like it – we’ve certainly come across some great users and learned about some great pointers and links to breaking news. One Twitter user we’ve found particularly helpful is Kyle Thill posting for @ToyotaEquipment, a forklift dealership from Minneapolis. With 15,000+ followers, he must be doing something right! Safety is one of the ongoing themes of his posts, so if that’s of interest to you, he’s a good Twitter user to follow. He also issues The #Safety Daily Update, which is a curated “newspaper” of web-related safety matters. It’s worth checking out.
Signs of life for the elusive hard market – At Terms + Conditions, Claire Wilkinson talks about an uptick in commercial insurance prices as reported by Tower Watson’s latest commercial lines pricing survey.
Administrative note – We’ve shut down comments due to an unbelievable flood of comment spam. We’re sorry about that – but we don’t have the time to deal with it. If we come up with any new magical solutions to curtail it (we’ve tried many) we may reinstate comments at a later time.
Nina Kallen hosts this week’s Cavalcade of Risk at Insurance Coverage Law in Massachusetts – check it out.
Other noteworthy new briefs:
Business Insurance has had a complete online overhaul – here’s a guide to the new BusinessInsurance.com
HealthLawProf Blog covers the intersection of pharmaceuticals and online media in a pair of recent posts worth checking out: Social Media and Drug Promotion and Do No Evil: Googling Canadian Drug Imports.
Roberto Ceniceros: Top 20 largest workers comp insurers
Dave DePaolo: The 5 Stages of Work Comp Death
Jon Gelman: What to Do During an Earthquake
Joe Paduda: Work comp claim reserves – not good, but not too bad either
Claims Journal: “Fraud Dog” to Bring Insurance Fraud Cases to Reality TV
MEMIC Safety Blog: The Bite Stuff: Dogs not always a worker’s best friend
Safety Daily Advisor: Are Your Exit Routes OSHA Compliant?
New York Times, Room for Debate: Could Farms Survive Without Illegal Labor?