OH - Worker Gets No Benefits for Conveyor Belt Accident Due to Marijuana Use
02/17/2026 | 0
An Ohio appellate court upheld the denial of benefits for a worker for his injuries from a conveyor belt accident due to his marijuana use.
Rolando Del Rosario worked for Fresh Mark Inc. He suffered injuries at work in March 2024 when his glove became caught under a conveyor belt.
Del Rosario was taken to the hospital, where he tested positive for marijuana.
Del Rosario filed a workers’ compensation claim, which both a district hearing officer and staff hearing officer denied.
After the Industrial Commission declined consideration of further administrative appeals, Del Rosario f...
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Hawaii’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a determination that an injured worker was not wrongfully terminated and that she had not been denied due process.
Case: Mathern v. Edward D. Jones & Co., No. CAAP-23-0000369, 01/28/2026, unpublished.
Facts: Allisen Mathern worked for Edward D. Jones & Co. She suffered injuries at work in January 2015 and stopped working in February 2015.
Mathern filed a workers’ compensation claim in April 2015 and began receiving temporary disability benefits.
Jones placed Mathern on federal medical leave in March 2015. After her 12 weeks ...
A New York appellate court ruled that a nurse could not proceed with a civil action against the company that had contracted with her employer for her services.
Case: Jackson v. Laconia Nursing Home Inc., No. 31977/19, 01/29/2026, published.
Facts: Anna Victoria Dell Jackson worked for Towne Nursing Staff Inc., a staffing agency, as a nurse. Towne assigned her to work at Laconia Nursing Home Inc.
The agreement between the companies provided that Towne's nurses were required to abide by all of Laconia's policies and procedures, that Laconia "retain[ed] professional and ...
The Illinois Appellate Court ruled that an Amazon delivery driver who was attacked while making a delivery was entitled to benefits for his injuries.
Case: Avila v. IWCC, No. 2-25-0093WC, 01/27/2026, unpublished.
Facts: Jose Avila worked for I Deliver Logistics, delivering packages in an Amazon truck.
On Aug. 1, 2023, he was driving his truck in Aurora, making deliveries, when a black SUV turned sharply in front of him, causing him to brake suddenly.
Avila alleged that the SUV almost struck a woman who was unloading groceries on the side of the road as well.
Avila honked and made a gestur...
Labor regulators in Montana and Idaho are warning consumers about potential scams.
The Idaho Industrial Commission on Thursday said it has received multiple reports about two workers' compensation scams.
One scheme involves sending notices to people claiming they've been awarded a workers' compensation settlement but must pay a fee to receive the funds. The settlement offers look official, including the Industrial Commission's address, a Department of Labor seal and a judge's signature, but the agency said they are fraudulent.
The other scam involves people falsely ...
The California Workers' Compensation Institute reported that the number of nonfatal work injuries and illnesses returned to pre-pandemic levels in 2024.
Recent results from California’s Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses show a 25.6% increase in nonfatal cases, from about 450,000 in 2021 to about 565,900 in 2022. The number of nonfatal cases then fell 20% over two years, to 472,500 in 2023 and 454,100 in 2024.
Though the changes partly reflected shifts in the labor market, CWCI said the major fluctuations were largely driven by COVID-19 infections reported by employers a...
A California lawmaker is gearing up for a third run at creating a single-payer health care system that once again would defer to an advisory board the question of how to handle medical treatment for workplace injuries.
Assemblymember Ash Kalra, D-San Jose, on Thursday introduced AB 1900, which would create the California Guaranteed Health Care for All program to provide comprehensive, universal single-payer health care coverage.
The bill would also create a nine-member board that would be tasked with organizing, administering, marketing and implementing the single-payer program. The boar...
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan is selling its workers' compensation subsidiary, AF Group, to Enstar Group, a global insurance and reinsurance company backed by investment firm Sixth Street.
The deal is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the second half of 2026. Financial terms were not disclosed.
AF Group, based in Lansing, provides commercial and specialty property and casualty insurance nationwide. The company has operated under Blue Cross ownership since 1994 and expanded from a single-state workers’ compensation provider into a nationwide carrier.
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A California appeals court, in an unpublished decision, affirmed a trial court's finding that a worker fired after a prolonged absence failed to carry her burden of establishing a triable issue of material fact in support of her discrimination and retaliation claims.
The City of Santa Ana determined that Bilhah Lopez voluntarily abandoned her position as a public works dispatcher when she didn't show up for work for 11 months in 2021 and did not respond to requests for information about her condition or necessary restrictions.
On Jan. 4, 2021, Lopez notified the city that she w...
The Illinois Appellate Court ruled that a circuit court erred in dismissing an interlocutory appeal from a Workers’ Compensation Commission decision.
Case: Heberlein v. IWCC, No. 4-22-0765WC, 01/27/2026, unpublished.
Facts and procedural history: Ruth Ann Heberlein worked for Homecare Medical Equipment. She filed workers’ compensation claims for injuries she allegedly sustained on two dates in 1999.
In February 2009, an arbitrator set the claims for hearing on May 20, 2009, and directed Heberlein to provide a copy of the order to Homecare.
Homecare failed to appear at the ...
A New York appellate court reinstated the claims against a property owner for a worker’s death from a falling beam.
Case: Chiriboga-Herrera v. Litt, No. 2024-03315, 01/28/2026, published.
Facts: William Orlando Barzallo-Diaz was allegedly struck by a falling beam weighing approximately 1,000 pounds while working on a construction project at a property owned by Marty Litt.
Barzallo-Diaz was pronounced dead at the scene.
Procedural history: The administrators of Barzallo-Diaz’s estate filed suit against Litt, asserting claims for negligence and violations of the Labor Law.
Litt ...
Workers' compensation insurance services provider Summit announced the expansion of its coverage into Delaware and Pennsylvania.
The Lakeland, Florida-based Summit said the Delaware Department of Insurance and Pennsylvania Insurance Department approved Bridgefield Casualty Insurance Co., Bridgefield Employers Insurance Co. and Bridgefield Indemnity Insurance Co. to offer workers' compensation coverage in their states.
Summit is a member of the Great American Insurance Group.
It manages the day-to-day operations of the carriers and provides workers’ compensation serv...
The Delaware Superior Court upheld the denial of benefits for damage to a worker’s lower teeth.
Case: Peed v. Essential Staffing Inc., No. S25A-06-001 RHR, 01/27/2026, published.
Facts and procedural history: Craig Peed worked for Essential Staffing Inc. He suffered multiple injuries in February 2012 while performing tree trimming services through Essential when a limb fell and hit him on the head.
Essential paid Peed total disability benefits and covered his medical treatment.
Part of Peed’s compensation was for injuries to his upper teeth numbered five through eight. Peed&rsq...
A Louisiana appellate court ruled that a firefighter’s claim for benefits for his hearing loss was time-barred.
Case: Dunn v. Jefferson Parish Fire Department, No. 25-CA-396, 01/28/2026, published.
Facts: John Dunn spent more than 30 years working for the Jefferson Parish Fire Department before retiring in September 2021.
He filed a workers’ compensation claim in September 2024, asserting that he sustained substantial hearing loss over time due to excessive noise, sirens, explosions and other occupational conditions.
Procedural history: The Fire Department moved to di...
WV - Bill Would Provide Paid Trauma Counseling for First Responders
A bill in West Virginia would require employers to provide paid traumatic event counseling to peace officers, firefighters and 911 dispatchers exposed to certain critical incidents in the line of duty.
HB 5428 would add a section to state law directing the Law-Enforcement Professional Standards Subcommittee to establish a program offering up to 12 visits of licensed counseling per qualifying incident. Counseling would be employer-paid and could be in-person or by telehealth.
Qualifying events include witnessing death or maiming, investigating dangerous crimes against children, being involved...
