DIR Announces Approval of SB 863 Emergency Regulations

The California Department of Industrial Relations announced on Friday that the Office of Administrative Law approved emergency regulations to implement Senate Bill 863, and that the formal rulemaking process with public hearings will begin in March.The department said the interim regulations will improve the state’s workers’ compensation system by creating an independent medical panel to review injuries, streamlining payment disputes through independent bill review and “curbing unnecessary liens.”The components of SB 863, which Gov. Jerry Brown signed on Sept. 18, becam...