A New Era for the Texas Workers' Compensation System

Saturday, July 29, 2006 | 0

By The Honorable Albert Betts, Texas Workers' Compensation Commissioner

September 1, 2005 began a new era for our state's workers' compensation system. On that day, the old Texas Workers' Compensation Commission ceased to exist and the new Division of Workers' Compensation was established within the Texas Department of Insurance. A number of improvements to the workers' comp law began to take shape as rules were drafted to implement House Bill 7 (79th Legislature).

It has been a challenging assignment but, after just a few months of work, we can already see much progress.

I think it's important to state that the basic purpose of the system remains unchanged. Employers who choose to purchase workers' compensation insurance and subscribe to the system offer their employees a safety net in the event that they are injured on the job. At the same time, these employers are protected from most types of lawsuits except in cases of gross negligence. The system, in the end, should provide a consistent and reliable way to compensate and treat injured employees with the ultimate goal of helping them return to work in a timely manner.

What's different? First of all, the legislative reforms addressed the problem of runaway medical costs by introducing health care networks into the system. Networks can improve the quality of health care for injured employees while introducing better management of costs through competition and other market factors. Our experience from group health insurance proves that it can be done, and also guides us away from the pitfalls of previous managed care systems. However, we haven't fulfilled our duty if we accomplish lower costs at the expense of quality of care. I believe that the workers' comp health care networks will prove to be a tremendous step forward in the quality of medical care for injured employees, while reducing the financial costs for insurance companies that translate into higher premiums for employers.

While our system will focus on the network model of health care, it will still be flexible enough to accommodate injured employees who have medical emergencies or reside in an area of the state where networks are not available. In those cases, injured workers will still get the care they need.

In addition to the new health care networks, the new workers' comp law provides for a number of improvements that the system has needed for a long time. We are currently developing rules that make sure injured employees get the income benefits that are due them, and get them paid on time; that improve the dispute process so that claim disputes are resolved fairly and in a reasonable amount of time; and that help get injured employees back to work as soon as they are physically able.

Another major change is the creation of a new state agency devoted to the needs of injured workers. The Office of Injured Employee Counsel represents injured employees in the rulemaking process, filling a valuable role in the new administrative structure. Perhaps most importantly, Public Counsel Norman Darwin makes sure that injured workers have adequate assistance by trained ombudsmen in dispute proceedings.

Lastly, the new law eliminated the old six-member board and calls for leadership from a single Commissioner of Workers' Compensation, appointed by the Governor. I have been charged with leading this new system forward, and my goal is to make the Texas workers' compensation system the best in the country. I am fortunate to have the assistance and support of Texas Insurance Commissioner Mike Geeslin in this endeavor. We are working together closely and are both entirely committed to making sure the new system succeeds.

There are many changes underway that will begin to rebuild confidence in the Texas workers' compensation system. An injury on the job is a very serious event for everyone involved. It is my goal not to add to the trauma of the experience. Our system should provide a reliable way for injured employees to receive the help they need from their employer, the appropriate benefits from the insurance carrier and the necessary medical attention they need from their doctor. When all of these needs are met, then the system will be back on solid ground.

Albert Betts is the Texas Workers' Compensation Commissioner. Governor Rick Perry appointed Betts to the post of workers' compensation commissioner on September 1, 2005. When appointed to his current position, Betts was the chief of staff and senior associate commissioner of operations at the Texas Department of Insurance. He previously served as general counsel for the State Office of Risk Management, assistant general counsel for the Texas Workers' Compensation Commission and assistant attorney general for the Office of the Attorney General. A graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, Betts received a law degree from the University of Texas School of Law.

Republished with permission from the Insurance Council of Texas.

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