Bills Address Fee Schedules, Wage Calculations and Presumptions

California lawmakers introduced bills that would require biennial adjustments to the Medical-Legal Fee Schedule and annual cost-of-living increases in wages used to calculate permanent partial disability benefits. At the same time, lawmakers brought back proposals to add security officers for the Department of State Hospitals to the heart trouble presumption and to create a new presumption for nurses. Sen. Anna Caballero, D-Fresno, on Thursday introduced SB 555, which would require increasing the range of wages used to calculate permanent partial disability benefits each year "by an amo...