Weekly carnival – A lively edition of Cavalcade of Risk has been posted by Jim at Bargaineering.
NH targeting misclassified employees – New Hampshire employers take note: The departments of labor, employment security, insurance and revenue are teaming up to ferret out employers who misclassify workers as independent contractors to avoid paying workers compensation and unemployment insurance. In addition to potential criminal penalties, various state agencies may impose hefty fines and penalties.
WV: open for business – West Virginia’s transition from a private state fund to an open market will enter its final phase on July 1 when WV opens to competition. A total of 150 companies have filed the rates and forms required to offer workers’ comp insurance, including 25 companies that were not previously licensed in the state.
Residual market update – Roberto Ceniceros of Business Insurance notes that for the third year in a row, the residual market has declined. He notes that workers’ comp residual market premiums fell by 17% to $1 billion during 2007. A declining residual market (also sometimes called the “market of last resort“) is an indicator of market health. For the full report, see NCCI’s Residual Market Management Summary 2007 (PDF).
WC cost drivers – Joe Paduda discusses how the workers’ comp supply chain is killing workers’ comp – a good explanation of why purchasing vendor services based on discounts is a flawed strategy – particularly when it comes to medical care.
Occupational safety – we call your attention to OSHA Underground, a blog we’ve cited before. It includes frequent, informed updates about various occupational safety failures and OSHA’s response – or all too often, lack of response. Lately, bloggers have offered numerous stories on crane-related incidents, including a recent study that points to a need for a national certification program is needed for crane operators, inspectors, riggers, and signalers.
Election year: health care plans – Heath care is one of the nation’s most pressing domestic issues and will likely carry great weight in the upcoming election. Two respected health care pros offer their comparisons of the candidates’ health care plans: Bob Laszewski of
Lighter side – We call your attention to this important medical research: D’oh! An analysis of Medical care Provided to the Family of Homer J. Simpson (PDF). While this is a 1998 article, we think that a decade later, it still has relevance to those interested in medial research.
