There’s been a lot going on since the debut of the Affordable Care Act and the health wonk pundits are on it. Jaan Sidorov has posted The President Says You Should Ignore This Health Wonk Review at Disease Management Care Blog – a great compendium of opinions and prognostications. Check it out!
While on the topic of the ACA’s rollout, see Everything you need to know about Obamacare’s problems. Sarah Kliff of the Washington Post offers a guide to the problems with the ACA rollout. For further developments as things evolve, the healthcare section on Ezra Klein’s Wonk Blog is a good source.
In other news:
Busy time for deals – Joe Paduda is your go-to guy when it comes to mergers, acquisitions & other deals in the work comp and managed care arena. See the latest in The deal of the century about Apax Partners buying spree; the completion of the PMSI-Progressive deal and MedRisk’s aquisition of imaging company MDIA. If you aren’t following Joe’s blog, you are missing some important information.
It’s All About Expectations – While attending a trade show, Dave DePaolo is reminded of some essential fundamentals: “Various people from different walks of the industry randomly commented without conscious coordination of their presentations on how much education needs to be a part of the workers’ compensation claims process. / And not just education for the injured worker – who of course needs a lot of hand holding through the entire ordeal as that person is thrust into the vast unknown with little say or control over the course of his or her claim life./ Employers need to be educated on how the process deals with the work injury, how important their participation is relative to the injured worker, the physician, the claims administrator and the impact of all of this on their premiums.”
Pepper-spray cop gets $38K in workers’ comp – “The former Marine will receive retirement benefits for his 11 years of campus employment. He was being paid an annual salary of $121,680 at the time he was fired.”
NSC Report: Only Three States Adequately Addressing Prescription Drug Abuse – WorkCompWire discusses and links to the National Safety Council recently released report, Prescription Nation: Addressing America’s Prescription Drug Abuse Epidemic. “In the report, NSC examined state efforts in four areas: state leadership and action, prescription drug monitoring programs, responsible painkiller prescribing and overdose education and prevention programs. / Kentucky, Vermont and Washington were the only states that met standards in all four areas.”
Can You Require Flu Shots for Employees? – Mike Halberman, “The HR Compliance Guy,” says that “it depends” whether or not you can require employees to have flu shots. He offers guidance on various scenarios when it might or might not be a problem.
OSHA’s Proposed Crystalline Silica Rule: How You Can Participate – OSHA’s notice-and-comment rulemaking process relies heavily on input from the public, including the regulated community and other stakeholders. OSHA encourages members of the public to participate in the silica rulemaking by submitting comments on the proposal and by providing testimony and evidence at the informal public hearings that the Agency will hold after the comment period ends.
News briefs
- A.M. Best: U.S. P&C Insurers Report Strong First-Half; Record Polichyholder Surplus
- P&C Industry Posts 96.5 Combined Ratio at Midyear
- U.S. manufacturing growth slows in Oct, disrupted by govt shutdown
- Ethnic competitive edge in claims management
- Surgeries unnecessarily drive costs
- NIOSH Study Finds Higher Cancer Rates Among Firefighters
- October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month: Domestic Violence Can Spill Over Into the Workplace
- Bullying Resources for Parents Teachers & Kids – Bullying Prevention Month
- Failure to Provide Cal-OSHA-Required Recovery Periods to Avoid Heat Illness Now Results in Premium Pay – And More Class Action Litigation
- The legal reason why you shouldn’t force employees to turn over social media passwords
- October is Natl Protect your Hearing Month & Natl Audiology Awareness Month
- Get the right angle on ladder safety
