Albany, NY – New York State Workers’ Compensation Fraud Inspector General Catherine Leahy Scott recently announced the guilty plea, restitution order and resignation of a New York State corrections officer who defrauded the Workers’ Compensation system and, through the submission of improperly altered leave documents, stole over $4,000 in benefits to which he was not… [Read more]
Industry News
U.S. Physical Therapy Makes Third Acquisition in Industrial Injury Prevention Sector
Houston, TX – U.S. Physical Therapy, Inc. (NYSE: USPH) recently announced that it has acquired a third company that is a provider of industrial injury prevention services. The previous acquisitions in this business line occurred in 2017 and 2018. The acquired company specializes in delivering injury prevention and care, post offer employment testing, functional capacity… [Read more]
CA DWC Holding Public Hearing for Proposed Evidence-Based Updates to MTUS
San Francisco, CA – The Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) has issued a notice of public hearing for proposed evidence-based updates to the Medical Treatment Utilization Schedule (MTUS), which can be found at California Code of Regulations, title 8, section 9792.23. The public hearing is scheduled for Monday, May 6 at 10 a.m. in the… [Read more]
AM Best Upgrades Issuer Credit Rating of Stonetrust Commercial Insurance Company
Oldwick, NJ -(BusinessWire)- AM Best has upgraded the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) to “bbb+” from “bbb” and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B++ (Good) of Stonetrust Commercial Insurance Company (Stonetrust) (headquartered in Baton Rouge, LA). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) remains stable. The ratings reflect Stonetrust’s balance sheet strength, which… [Read more]
Ducking Workers’ Comp Coverage Costs Ohio Freight Hauler $144K
Columbus, OH – The owner of a Mansfield freight hauling and trucking company must pay $144,400 in restitution to the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) following his sentence last week for his conviction on four felony charges related to workers’ compensation fraud. A Richland County judge also ordered Robert Tate, owner of Elite TNT… [Read more]
TDI Tests Artificial Intelligence to Review Policies
Austin, TX – There’s more to artificial intelligence than the algorithms that make Siri, Facebook, and Amazon work. It holds the potential to instantly scan and compare mountains of data. That’s why the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) is testing its use to review insurance policies. “Imagine being able to instantly compare every policy we’ve… [Read more]
CA WCIRB Releases Quarterly Experience Report for Year-End 2018
Oakland, CA – The Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California (WCIRB) has released its Quarterly Experience Report based on statewide workers’ compensation insurer loss and premium experience through December 31, 2018. The major findings of the report include: California written premium for 2018 is 4 percent below that for 2017 and 6 percent below… [Read more]
FAIR Health Elects Lynn B. Nicholas and Rob Parke to Board of Directors
New York, NY – FAIR Health, Inc., recently announced that it has elected Lynn B. Nicholas, LFACHE, and Rob Parke, FIA, ASA, MAAA, to its Board of Directors. A national, independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing transparency to healthcare costs and health insurance information, FAIR Health is governed by a Board comprising leaders from all… [Read more]
NY Woman Charged with Stealing Dead Grandmother’s Workers’ Comp Benefits
Albany, NY – New York State Workers’ Compensation Fraud Inspector General Catherine Leahy Scott recently announced the arrest of a City of Rochester woman on charges that she defrauded the Workers’ Compensation system by more than $5,000 by signing and cashing benefit checks sent to her deceased grandmother. Brandy R. Sheppard of Rochester was arraigned… [Read more]
FDA Issues Statement on New Labeling to Help Providers with Opioid Tapering
Silver Spring, MD – Douglas Throckmorton, M.D., Deputy Center Director for Regulatory Programs in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, recently released a new statement on opioid analgesic labeling changes to give providers better information for how to properly taper patients who are physically dependent on opioids: As the Department of Health and Human… [Read more]