Newsletter Sign-up

At its summer meeting, the National Conference of Insurance Legislators reviewed proposed legislation in a couple of states and heard testimony from industry insiders on the practice of physicians selling medications out of their offices.

Long-term opioid users in the Texas workers' comp system are getting a wake-up call. The state next year is shutting off their supply unless they have pre-authorization.

The Supreme Court's decision to uphold most aspects of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 led to a flurry of online discussions and opinions.

Pain management, medical networks, and unnecessary treatments are among the issues targeted in the Health/Medical Management track.

Returning injured workers to the workforce can be tricky in the current economic environment. Some employers question whether it is feasible to pay a less-productive injured worker and may instead consider replacing that employee with a less expensive new hire.

"Narcotics use in workers' compensation is becoming more common," says a new NCCI study. "In 2008, over one-third of claimants with prescriptions received narcotics, up from 27 percent in 2001."

These are the sessions in the Better Claims Management track.

Reducing prescription drug abuse and the associated high costs is the idea behind Get Ahead of the Claim, a pharmacy benefit management company's program aimed at injured workers.

Workers' comp stakeholders must be able to understand and respond to changes in the labor markets in order to keep the system healthy. One of the biggest changes on the horizon is the makeup of jobs in the manufacturing sector.

Remote workers, exclusive remedy challenges, and Medicare set-asides are among the issues in this year's Legal track.

There's a new proposal designed to improve the process for gaining approval of Medicare set-asides. While insurance industry groups are lauding the measure, two legal experts are unimpressed.

Several workers' comp stakeholders say settling older claims is not nearly as difficult as you might think.

Should a traveling employee injured during a sexual encounter be entitled to workers' comp benefits? Yes, in the case of an Australian claimant. The story points to the confusion pertaining to workers on the move.

The opioid epidemic in the workers' comp system was first highlighted in a study released by the California Workers' Compensation Institute in 2010. The main researcher, Alex Swedlow, is among the nation's highest-level thought leaders on the subject and a featured speaker at this year's conference.

Employers who leave injured workers out of the loop during the internal investigation and reporting process are asking for trouble. Keeping the employee in the dark is one of the biggest reasons some workers' comp claims become expensive and time-consuming, say three workers' comp practitioners.

Here's the good news: The Americans with Disabilities Act does not require employers to accommodate their employees who have medical marijuana cards -- even in states where it is legal. Here's the bad news: Employers may be exposed under state law.