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The Office of Injured Employee Counsel is holding its annual stakeholder meeting in a few days. A key part of the agenda is OIEC’s legislative agenda for the 2015 Legislative Session. Not surprisingly, OIEC’s wish list would create considerable expense to Carriers. Here are the changes OIEC wants –
Expand LIBs – OIEC wants a statutory amendment clarifying that a Claimant qualifies for LIBs if he or she loses use of a body part as a result of a compensable injury even if the Claimant’s compensable injury was not to that body part.
Increase TIBs Amount – OIEC wants increases in TIBs calculations: (1) increase in the benchmark earning rate from $8.50 an hour to $12.40 an hour, (2) increase TIBs from 70 percent to 75 percent of the AWW for a Claimant that earn $12.40 an hour or more, and (3) increase TIBs from 75 percent to 80 percent of AWW for a Claimant that earn less than $12.40 an hour.
Limit Carrier Ability to Dispute Extent of Injury – OIEC wants a deadline to dispute extent of injury placed in the statute. It wants a Carrier to have to dispute extent of injury within 60 days of receiving written notice that the injury extends to include a certain body part or that defense would be waived. The intention of this legislative change is to codify a 60 day waiver period in extent of injury cases, contrary to the Supreme Court’s decision inState Office of Risk Mgmt. v. Lawton.
Same Venue for Judicial Review of Medical Fee Dispute Decisions and BenefitDecisions
– OIEC wants the venue to be the same for judicial review of a medical fee dispute decision as it is for a benefit decision. That is, judicial review of both types of proceedings should be filed in county where the employee lived at the time of injury or death.
Provide Attorney’s Fees to Claimants for Medical Necessity Dispute Cases–
OIEC wants Carriers be liable for Claimants’ attorneys’ fees incurred when a Claimant prevails in a judicial review of a medical necessity dispute, if the injured employee prevailed administratively at the Appeals Panel.
Carriers Should Pay for Claimant’s Expert Evidence of Causation– OIEC wants to require Carriers to pay for treating doctors to provide opinions on causation through reports or testimony at the CCH, or if the treating doctor is not available, to pay adesignated doctor to provide such report or testimony. Alternatively, OIEC wants a legislative grant to give OIEC money to hire experts.