Opt-out Debated at National Conference

LAS VEGAS -- Depending which expert you listen to, workers’ compensation opt-out laws in Texas and Oklahoma are either depriving injured workers of needed benefits or enhancing their level of care. Those were the two widely different viewpoints voiced Wednesday during a session on opt-out systems at the National Workers’ Compensation and Disability Conference in Las Vegas. Texas has long allowed employers to opt-out of its workers' compensation system, and Oklahoma passed a bill in 2013 allowing employers to opt-out if they provide alternative benefit plans with similar benef...