CA - Governor Signs SIBTF Reforms
07/16/2026 | 0
California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the bill implementing his administration's Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund reforms.
Newsom on Monday signed SB 171, a budget trailer bill that includes provisions to tighten eligibility criteria for SIBTF claims and permanently adopt a statute giving the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board 60 days from the date it receives a case file to act on a petition for reconsideration.
The administration has argued that the reforms are necessary because the Department of Industrial Relations estimates that total liabilities for the program and th
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The Mississippi Court of Appeals ruled that a worker with a long history of shoulder issues did not have reason to know she had a work-related shoulder injury more than two years before she filed her claim.
Case: Thompson v. Boyd Biloxi LLC, No. 2025-WC-01288-COA, 06/30/2026, published.
Facts: Sandra Thompson began working for Boyd Biloxi LLC in 2012 as a dealer and a supervisor. As a dealer, Thompson was required to lift her arms above her head, to the side, and extend them back and forth.
Thompson saw Dr. Stephen Schepens in April 2021 for pain in her right shoulder.
In July 2021, T
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a denial of authorization for a shoulder surgery for a worker with a history of shoulder issues.
Case: Williams v. T.S. Elliott Contracting LLC, No. 26-ICA-30, 06/30/2026, published.
Facts: Ronzil Williams worked for T.S. Elliott Contracting LLC. He went to the hospital in January 2024 and reported experiencing a pop in his shoulder while hanging drywall at work.
Upon examination, Williams had severely limited active and passive range of motion of the left shoulder. Williams indicated that he previously had a tendon rupture in the s
A New York appellate court ruled that a worker injured by falling metal sheets was entitled to summary judgment on his Labor Law claim.
Case: Aponte v. 298 East Village Owner LLC, No. 34327/19, 06/30/2026, published.
Facts: Steven Aponte allegedly suffered injuries at a construction site while attempting to move a dolly loaded with sheets of metal.
According to Aponte, there were 10 to 15 sheets, each measuring about 8 feet by 5 feet, vertically stacked on the dolly's platform. The highest point of the metal sheets was 6 to 7 feet above the floor, and they were not secured to
How well can judges assess a witness’s credibility, and how important does the WCAB believe it is for a WCJ to have the opportunity to apply its presumably well-honed baloney barometer? The answers may surprise you.
The Workers' Compensation Appeals Board firmly believes judges can assess honesty in the courtroom. Presumably, this is due in no small part to the commissioners’ prior careers on the bench. After years of judging witness veracity in the courtroom (and rarely, if ever, having their judgments successfully challenged), the commissioners have likely been pres
A New York appellate court upheld the denial of a worker’s motion to renew his bid for summary judgment on his Labor Law claim, and it upheld a grant of conditional summary judgment for a defendant on its indemnification claim against his employer.
Case: Stratis v. 345 Park Ave LP, No. 157849/20 and 595969/20, 06/30/2026, published.
Facts: Eugene Stratis worked for National Acoustics LLC. He was allegedly injured when he tripped on a bag of sprinkler materials while performing drywall work in a building owned by 345 Park Ave LP.
Procedural history: Stratis filed suit against Park and
The Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission on Wednesday posted a warning about an elaborate scam using phony court proceedings to steal personal information from workers.
"This sophisticated email scam targets individuals by impersonating courts and workers’ compensation professionals in order to schedule fraudulent hearings and obtain money," the commission said. "While anyone can fall victim to this scam, it has been known to specifically target Spanish-speaking individuals."
The scam solicits workers by phone, email or video calls, telling them they must p
NATL. - NCCI: Hiring Rebound Could Lift Comp Premium, Injury Frequency
A rebound in hiring could increase workers' compensation premiums while putting upward pressure on injury frequency as employers add less-experienced workers, the National Council on Compensation Insurance said in a report released Wednesday.
The organization’s “State of the Economy” report said employment gains have expanded beyond health care into construction, manufacturing and transportation.
The report’s chart shows that employers added an average of 92,000 jobs a month during the first half of 2026, compared with an average of 10,000 a month in 2025.
More e
The Ventura County civil grand jury said in a new report that the county has improved how it processes presumptive workers' compensation claims, but long-standing concerns persist among workers about how their claims are processed.
Deputy sheriffs with presumptive claims told members of the grand jury about frustration over limited communication, confusing delays, long waiting periods and claims that were initially denied only to be approved later.
Executives from the Ventura County risk management office described complex and convoluted laws and difficulties in finding ways to make
The New Mexico Court of Appeals overturned the denial of a worker’s claim for benefits for a knee injury, finding the judge erred in determining that the worker had selected the initial treatment provider.
Case: Chavez v. Prull Custom Builders, No. A-1-CA-42494, 06/29/2026, published.
Facts: Victoria Chavez worked for Prull Custom Builders. She injured her left knee when she slipped and fell in Prull’s parking lot in February 2022.
Chavez was treated at a Concentra urgent care center and released to work with restrictions.
A few days later, she received referrals for
A federal appellate court upheld the dismissal of South Carolina’s challenge to a 2016 rule issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
Case: McMaster v. U.S. Department of Labor, No. 25-1986, 06/24/2026, published.
Facts: The Occupational Safety and Health Act requires the U.S. Department of Labor to administer occupational health and safety standards, but it allows states to establish their own plans, subject to OSHA approval.
In July 2016, a new rule required OSHA to annually adjust its penalties to keep up with inflation. The rule said state plans h
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the denial of a worker’s request to expand his claim to add severe cervical stenosis as a compensable condition.
Case: Greynolds v. Bluewater Inc., No. 26-ICA-8, 06/30/2026, published.
Facts: John Greynolds worked for Bluewater Inc. as a truck driver. He suffered injuries when his truck was rear-ended by another truck moving at full speed after losing its brakes coming down a hill.
At a hospital, Greynolds reported significant neck pain and left upper extremity tingling, but he denied any loss of consciousness.
A New York appellate court upheld a denial of summary judgment on a worker’s Labor Law claim for his injuries from a trip-and-fall accident.
Case: Almer v. Summit Glory Property LLC, No. 154195/19, 595753/19, 595378/20, 595584/20, 06/30/2026, published.
Facts: Nick Almer worked for the Forest Electric Corp. He tripped and fell over a drag line — a rope used to pull cable through a conduit — while working on a construction project.
The drag line was attached to a partially installed data cable that had been coiled up and hung from a passageway ceiling.
The constructio
A bill revising the criteria for Alaska firefighters to qualify for the presumption that certain types of cancer arose from employment took effect without the governor's signature.
HB 14 became law Monday without the signature of Gov. Mike Dunleavy.
The bill doubles the post-separation coverage for the presumption that applies to cancers, including brain cancer, melanoma and leukemia, to 10 years from five.
Additionally, firefighters will earn six calendar months of post-separation coverage for each year of service, up from the three months they currently receive.
The bill would also r
The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division and the Oregon Employment Department are partnering to provide free worker safety and health training workshops in rural communities throughout the state.
The workshops will show workers how to protect themselves from the four hazards that pose the greatest risk of death in the construction industry: falls, getting caught in or between objects, being struck by objects, and electrocution.
In addition, the workshops will address heat-illness prevention, workers' rights and whistleblower protections, and information for workers and em
Great American Insurance Group’s Alternative Markets Division and CoEfficient Underwriters Agency Inc., a program administrator specializing in workers’ compensation and alternative risk solutions, announced on Tuesday a new workers’ compensation program for temporary staffing firms.
The program was developed to support agents and insureds seeking an option tailored to the unique operational and claims characteristics of the temporary staffing industry, the companies said in a joint statement.
"Temporary staffing firms need workers’ compensation insuranc
