The Guidelines do provide for an opportunity to request a "Variance" from the Guidelines to authorize specific treatment. However, the bureaucracy appears to be more than most doctors can handle and the claimant's are suffering as a consequence.
Click 03.28.11
The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire of 1911
Friday, March 25, 2011 marked the 100th Anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire in New York City, a tragedy that marked the beginning of a period of labor reforms in the City of New York, the State of New York and the country. 146 immigrant workers died in that fire where the emergency exit doors were blocked and the fire truck ladders could not reach the windows of the floors the factory the workers were trapped on.
One of the reforms that came from that tragedy was the NYS Workers Compensation Law that was intended to compensate employees who are injured in the course of their employment. Prior to the enactment of the Workers Compensation Law the only way a worker could recover the cost of lost wages and medical expenses for an on-the-job injury was to sue their employer. That was a costly and time consuming process that would take years before the employee would see any money, rather than weeks or months.
The Workers Compensation Law traded the employees right to sue their employer for the ability and right to get immediate medical treatment paid for by the employer/insurance company, and the entitlement to 2/3 of your wages to be paid to the employee during a period of total disability.
It has been argued that many of the reforms initiated after the triangle shirtwaist fire have gradually evaporated as unions have become less dominant and labor jobs have travelled overseas. It is my hope that it will not take another tragedy on our shores, or in a factory in some other country producing goods for the United States, before the rest of the world sees the fairness and justice of giving simple equitable rights to workers who produce the goods that make the profits for the corporations.
May the 100th anniversary of the death of those 146 immigrant workers remind us the safety of the labor must never again be secondary to the profit of the company.
01.25.11
Workers' Compensation Law Judge Rules in Favor of World Trade Center Worker
Decision | Press Release
03.17.10
Some tips for your Independent Medical Exam (IME)
Anyone who has ever filed a workers compensation claim has gone through one, the dreaded IME, or carrier’s consultant examination. The carrier sends you for an examination by a doctor of their choosing to evaluate if your injuries are as bad as your treating doctor says, or more likely not nearly as bad as your doctor says. Some IME’s might suggest completely different diagnoses from your treating doctor (sometimes from the comfort of their chair without the benefit of even putting their hand on you.)
The worst part is that these exams will be used by the carrier to support their position on the amount and type of treatment you need, or the amount of money they must pay you.
So how do you defend against the carrier’s consultant discrediting your claim? Here are a couple of suggestions:
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02.17.10
The NYS Workers’ Compensation Board’s requirements to prove
“attachment to the labor market” to justify continuing payments.
The Workers’ Compensation Law is becoming a more complex system for the injured worker to navigate. As this law continues to evolve it is becoming more difficult for a claimant follow up on their claim without the benefit of an attorney experienced in the field of Workers Compensation Law. The most recent change in the law effecting “partially disabled” workers demonstrates that well.
The Workers Compensation Board has issued a number of decisions that allow the insurance company to suspend payments to a claimant because that claimant has failed to demonstrate that they remain “attached to the labor market.” A recent decision of the “Full Board” in the American Axle case...
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The NYS Workers' Compensation Board implemented a series of "Medical Treatment Guidelines" that became effective December 1, 2010. Those guidelines pertain to the treatment of Workers' Compensation injuries to a claimant's Neck, Back, Shoulder or Knee. These Guidelines provide the specific treatment that will be paid for dependent on the symptoms presented by the claimant. If the treatment is not covered by the Medical Treatment Guidelines then it will not be authorized or paid for.
