OH - High Court: Reason Teacher Not Working Over Summer Break Controls Eligibility for TTD
04/07/2026 | 0
The Ohio Supreme Court remanded a case with instructions for the Industrial Commission to analyze why a teacher was not working over a summer break to determine whether she was entitled to temporary disability benefits for three months in 2022.
Ohio law provides temporary disability benefits to those who lose wages as a direct result of an impairment arising from a compensable injury or occupational disease. Revised Code 4123.56(F) also disallows TD benefits when a person is not working as a direct result of reasons unrelated to the allowed condition.
The Industrial Commission failed to full...
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The Workers Compensation Research Institute released its 2026 Annual Report, highlighting research published last year and how it informed policy discussions throughout the country.
WCRI published 44 studies in 2025 documenting rising medical payments, fewer injuries following California’s heat protections, comparable or faster outcomes when advanced practitioners provided initial care, and higher claim frequency after recreational marijuana legalization, WCRI President and CEO Ramona Tanabe wrote in her opening letter.
WCRI research also included its CompScope Benchmark repo...
A painter is suing Bill Belichick, alleging that the former New England Patriots' head coach created an unsafe working condition at a home in Nantucket that caused a serious injury, according to media reports.
Andrew Jackson alleges he injured his right ankle when he slipped and fell while working at Belichick's property in June 2024.
Jackson argues that Forty Five Fair St., a limited liability company owned and controlled by Belichick, or the general contractor on the project, created an unsafe work environment. He claims that the cause of the fall was "plastic sheeting o...
NATL. - Safety Study: Injury Prevention Technology Reduces Strain
Workers who use technology designed to prevent musculoskeletal disorders report reduced physical strain and improved safety awareness, according to a study released Monday by the National Safety Council.
Technologies such as exoskeletons and robotics that provide direct physical support were most strongly associated with symptom reduction, while monitoring tools such as wearable sensors and computer vision systems helped workers identify ergonomic risks and adopt safer behaviors, according to the study.
Researchers surveyed more than 400 non-managerial workers across construction, manufactur...
New York, its Workers’ Compensation Board and Gov. Kathy Hochul are reshaping the state’s workers’ comp system, one step at a time.
Currently, providers who want to treat injured workers must apply for approval with the WCB. Under Hochul’s “universal authorization” for providers, all licensed providers in good standing would be able to treat injured workers.
Hochul first proposed universal provider authorization as part of her 2025 agenda, but the measure failed to advance. Hopefully, the second time&rs...
The Maryland General Assembly on Monday passed bills that would expand the hypertension presumption for firefighters and extend heart disease and hypertension presumptions to correctional officers in another county.
The Senate unanimously passed HB 347 and HB 878.
HB 347 would establish criteria for a firefighter, rescue squad member, advanced life support member or sworn member of the Office of the State Fire Marshal to demonstrate disablement from hypertension. The first responders need two years of cumulative service, be employed at the time of the claim application, be diagnosed with the...
Kids’ Chance of America and the Workers’ Compensation Institute announced the launch of Kids’ Chance WORKS, a national initiative to help students impacted by a parent’s catastrophic workplace injury explore career pathways.
Kids' Chance said the new program, made possible by a $100,000 investment from WCI, will expand its mission beyond scholarships and provide workforce readiness and mentorship opportunities. The program will support both scholarship recipients and students in the Kids' Chance "Planning for the Future" pipeline.
The new Kids’...
The New Jersey Compensation Rating and Inspection Rating Bureau announced an increase in the minimum hourly wage employers must pay to receive a credit through the Construction Classification Premium Adjustment Program.
The minimum hourly wage will increase to $40 from $38, the bureau announced Wednesday. The change takes effect at the start of 2027.
The Construction Classification Premium Adjustment Program aims to balance premiums among construction firms paying different rates. When premiums are calculated based only on payroll, a company that pays higher wages could also pay more for wor...
The Iowa Court of Appeals affirmed the finding that an injured worker in a position her employer created to accommodate her disability was entitled to permanent total disability benefits following a general layoff due to a plant closure.
Debra Stuart worked for Dickten Masch Plastics LLC. She originally settled her workers' compensation claim for injuries suffered in a workplace fall based on a permanent partial disability of 35% of the body as a whole, resulting in weekly benefits of $403 for 175 weeks.
She worked full time in a position Dickten Masch created to accommodate her disabili...
The Ohio Supreme Court on Friday ordered the Industrial Commission to reconsider whether a school district employee is entitled to temporary total disability benefits during summer recess, finding the agency failed to properly apply state law.
In State ex rel. Columbus City Schools, Columbus Bd. of Edn. v. Brookbank-Mizer, the court, in reversing, said the commission did not fully analyze whether the worker’s inability to work during the summer was directly caused by her injury, as required under the law.
The claimant, a speech therapist employed on a nine-month schedule, was injured i...
The Louisiana House of Representatives passed bills that would require the adoption of a new medical fee schedule and eliminate the Workers' Compensation Advisory Council.
The House on Wednesday voted 82-13 to pass HB 357, which would require the Office of Workers' Compensation Administration to implement a new medical fee schedule by Jan. 1, 2027. The new fee schedule would have to be reasonable in comparison to the current fee schedule — based on the mean of the usual and customary charges for services — and have similar characteristics as fee schedules in surr...
A bill that would allow the Division of Workers' Compensation to more precisely calculate annual taxes and surcharge rates is moving through the Missouri General Assembly.
The Rules Committee for the state House of Representatives on Thursday unanimously passed HB 2855, which would require assessments and taxes to be rounded to the nearest tenth of a percentage point instead of the nearest half.
Under the half-point rounding rule, if an actuarial analysis indicated that an assessment rate of 1.2% was appropriate, the division would have to decide between setting the rate at 1% and riskin...
Colorado lawmakers are working on a bill that would spin off the state-chartered workers' compensation carrier in exchange for a $300 million payment, according to a report by the Denver Gazette.
Pinnacol's payment to the state would be divided among several programs, including increasing Medicaid provider reimbursement rates and funding education programs.
For three years, Pinnacol would continue to serve as the insurer of last resort, providing workers' compensation coverage to businesses that can't obtain policies on the open market. After that, the Division of Insuran...
The California Division of Workers' Compensation posted an order adjusting the pathology and clinical laboratory section of the Official Medical Fee Schedule.
The division said the order incorporates Medicare's second-quarter updates to its pathology and laboratory fee schedule.
"Effective for services rendered on or after April 1, the maximum reasonable fees for pathology and clinical laboratory services shall not exceed 120% of the applicable fees set forth in the calendar year '2026 Quarter Two Medicare Clinical Laboratory Fee Schedule,' contained in the electro...
The Illinois Appellate Court upheld an award of penalties to an injured worker for his employer’s unreasonable delay in paying benefits.
Vincent Secor worked for Concrete Structures of the Midwest as a journeyman concrete carpenter for more than 20 years. His job required repeated heavy lifting, squatting, kneeling and walking.
On Jan. 12, 2017, Secor was instructed to lift a manhole cover to measure air quality. He and a co-worker used rebar hooks to lift the cover and move it.
Secor said he felt a tearing sensation in his back as he slid the manhole cover.
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