CAMBRIDGE, MA,–WorkCompWire– October 20, 2010 – The International Association of Accident Boards and Commissions (IAIABC) and the Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) are pleased to announce the publication of a comparison of workers’ compensation laws in all U.S. states, as well as some Canadian providences, Workers’ Compensation Laws, 3rd Edition.
These comparisons, originally created by the U.S. Department of Labor, were discontinued by the USDOL in 2006. By popular demand, the IAIABC and WCRI agreed to produce these comparisons as a joint project to meet the needs of policymakers and constituents looking to understand the similarities and differences between laws in multiple jurisdictions.
This publication contains seventeen tables covering insurance requirements; coverage exemptions and exclusions; medical benefits and methods of physician selection, levels of benefits provided for temporary and permanent disabilities as well as dependency benefits; coverage of mental stress, cumulative trauma, hearing loss and disfigurement; payment provisions and timeframes; rehabilitation provisions; advocate and attorney fee provisions; advisory committees and commissions; and the status of second injury funds.
The tables are in a web-accessible form. No other publication offers the same in-depth description of system features in an easy-to-access format.
Although every effort has been made to ensure the characterization of the laws are accurate and fairly stated, it is inherently difficult to summarize complex laws with complete accuracy for all applications of that law. These tables are best used to understand macro-level differences and general tendencies across jurisdictions.
Copies of this report can be ordered for a nominal fee from the WCRI web site: www.wcrinet.org.
The IAIABC is an association of government agencies that administer and regulate their jurisdiction’s workers’ compensation acts. They strive to gather the best resources available to solve the practical administrative and operational problems of their members.
WCRI is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit membership organization conducting public policy research on workers’ compensation, health care and disability issues. Its members include employers, insurers, and governmental entities, insurance regulators and state administrative agencies, as well as several state labor organizations.
Source: WCRI