Insurers Contesting Charge for Use of Medical Treatment Guidelines

By Michael Whiteley, Eastern Bureau ChiefNew York insurers are protesting a demand by the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) that stakeholders in the workers' compensation system pay for commercial use of the state's year-old medical treatment guidelines.Both the American Insurance Association (AIA) and the New York Insurance Association have asked the New York State Workers' Compensation Board (SWCB) to prevent ACOEM from billing for the use of the guidelines, which can be downloaded in PDF form for free from the state board's website.ACOEM and...