{"id":5191,"date":"2020-12-28T13:33:00","date_gmt":"2020-12-28T17:33:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/?p=5191"},"modified":"2020-12-28T13:33:00","modified_gmt":"2020-12-28T17:33:00","slug":"workers-compensation-trends-for-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/workers-compensation-trends-for-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"Workers\u2019 Compensation Trends for 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are many 2020 developments that will affect <a href=\"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/practice-areas\/workers-compensation\/\">workers\u2019 compensation<\/a> for both employees and employers in 2021 and the coming years. Many of these developments are related to COVID-19. Other developments, according to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/cmrris.com\/workers-compensation-trends-to-watch-in-2021\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CMR Risk &amp; Insurance<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> , include the use of telemedicine, the rise of mega claims, and the rise of comorbidities.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Employers across North Carolina and Virginia are required to have workers\u2019 compensation for their employees. The insurance should cover any accidents in the workplace regardless of fault and any occupational illnesses. The insurance should pay the workers\u2019 medical bills and a large portion of their lost wages (generally, about 2\/3rds) during the time they can\u2019t work, or in many cases, if their employer is unable to accommodate their physical restrictions due to the work injury, for a maximum of 500 weeks. In addition, the insurance should pay for any <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=buKVZQ1Aajg&amp;feature=emb_logo\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">permanent partial disability<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, even if the injured worker is able to return to employment. In some cases, payment for vocational rehabilitation may be required.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b><i>COVID-19 and workers\u2019 compensation<\/i><\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The COVID-19 pandemic has affected workers and employers in many ways. Key compensation factors are related to the nature of the business. Some professions such as healthcare and delivery services expose workers to a greater risk of contracting the disease. Other professions, such as professional services, have less risk because the professionals can usually work remotely by using the Internet.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Employers need to consider what safety precautions to take depending on the nature of their business. Employees need to understand that workers\u2019 compensation claims for families of workers who died due to COVID-19 and claims by workers who become ill or had to quarantine due to the disease will be handled on a case- by- case basis. Some of the questions that arise in COVID-19 workers\u2019 compensation cases include:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Did the illness arise out of the scope of your employment?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Was the illness caused by job-specific conditions \u2013 not through conditions that the general public was also exposed to?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Can you prove these items via your doctors to a standard of <\/span><b>clear and convincing<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> evidence?\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As we discussed in previous blogs, some states are enacting laws to cover workers who develop COVID-19. Some states are also creating presumptions as to what conditions indicate a worker who developed COVID-19 \u2013 developed that condition through work. Thus far, in Virginia, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/legiscan.com\/VA\/text\/SB5066\/id\/2205582\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a bill<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> which would have given such presumptions to health care workers, first responders, firefighters,\u00a0 and teachers who develop COVID-19 was <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vaco.org\/virginia-general-assembly-special-session-update\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">defeated<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in the State Legislature earlier this year. North Carolina is still wrangling with the particulars of a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncleg.gov\/BillLookUp\/2019\/H1057\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">similar bill<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> before the State Legislature in Raleigh.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Meanwhile, the Virginia Workers Compensation Commission in Virginia and Industrial Commission in North Carolina are still deciding COVID-19 workers\u2019 compensation cases on an individual basis, under the standards of an ordinary disease of life, which are difficult, but not impossible, to meet. Mega Claims<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/cmrris.com\/workers-compensation-trends-to-watch-in-2021\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CMR Risk &amp; Insurance<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, another new trend is that many workers are filing \u201cmega claims\u201d which can result in payouts (for medical bills, wages, and other expenses) of millions of dollars.These claims are usually due to workers who have severe, and often, permanent injuries. Mega claims are often due to motor vehicle accidents, accidents where the worker was struck by an object, and falls.\u201cIn some cases, however, mega claims can develop slowly\u2014particularly when caused by minor injuries that go untreated.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CMR reports that, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">according to a\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncci.com\/Articles\/Pages\/II_Country-wide-Mega-Claims-Report-2020-BureauReady.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">recent study<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0conducted by the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI), these claims have reached a 12-year high\u2014increasing in both frequency and severity. This increase has been attributed to several possible factors, such as changes in mortality patterns, medical advances, and a rise in health care costs.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Employers are advised to take extra safety measures to help reduce the risk workers will suffer injuries that can result in mega claims.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Presumptions for first responders<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mpower.mitchell.com\/about-mpower\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to M Power by Mitchell<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (a casualty and insurance company), \u201cstates are beginning to examine presumption laws for first responders and expanding coverage to conditions such as PTSD.\u201d The issue of presumptions raises questions as to:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Which injuries and illnesses should be covered?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Whether the injuries and illnesses are related to the risks of the job?<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Who should be covered, if anyone, beyond first responders?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For instance, Virginia this past summer passed into law what is now <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/title65.2\/chapter1\/section65.2-107\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">VA Code 65.2-107<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which provides that any first responders, fire fighters and police officers who suffer from <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/4412-2\/\"><b>Post Traumatic Stress Disorder<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (PTSD)<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> will be compensated, provided the PTSD was caused by a \u201cqualifying event.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A qualifying event is defined as an event:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Resulting in serious bodily injury or death to any person or persons;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Involving a minor who has been injured, killed, abused, or exploited;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Involving an immediate threat to life of the claimant or another individual;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Involving mass casualties; or<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Responding to crime scenes for investigation.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3><b><i>The rise in comorbidities<\/i><\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cA comorbidity is the simultaneous presence of two or more medical diagnoses for an individual.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cComorbid conditions are typically long-term health complications that have the potential to increase the severity of other injuries or illnesses that the affected individual may experience, making it more difficult to fully recover. Common comorbid conditions include obesity, diabetes, hypertension, depression, anxiety, and substance abuse.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CMR states that an NCCI study found that work injury claims involving comorbidities have nearly tripled since 2000. In addition, the cost of workers\u2019 compensation claims involving comorbidities is about twice that of other claims. This is generally because workers with comorbidities need more time to heal, are more likely to develop complications, and are at more risk of having a permanent disability.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In response to the concern about comorbidities, many employers are implementing wellness initiatives \u2013 to address chronic health problems and improve their staff\u2019s overall fitness.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another term to describe comorbidities are \u201c<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/pre-existing-medical-conditions-and-workers-compensation-claims\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">pre-existing conditions<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u201d The good news is that in most cases, if the work injury has even the slightest bit to do with causing the current disability, then the entire claim is compensable. The bad news is that if you are only partially disabled or on light duty, and a comorbid condition causes you to become completely disabled, that could essentially end your workers compensation claim, even if you are under an Award.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b><i>Labor trends and workers\u2019 compensation<\/i><\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many employers are hiring workers who lack experience in order to fill their labor shortages. The problem is that workers who are inexperienced are more prone to accidents in the workplace. Part of the problem of inexperienced workers can be addressed through better training. Part of the problem, though, is that there\u2019s simply nothing like experience to do jobs in a safer manner.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cAccording to a recent survey conducted by the Golden Triangle Business Roundtable in Texas, employees with less than five years of experience contribute to 43% of overall workplace injuries.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another labor trend that is affecting workplace accidents is that many workers are working later in life. Data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that \u201c<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">employees over the age of 55 in the labor force are expected to increase to nearly 25% by 2024 (up from 21.7% in 2014).\u201d Older workers generally require more time to recover from an accident than younger workers. Older workers generally have poorer balance, hearing, and vision than younger workers. They also have slower reaction times.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">North Carolina and Virginia workers\u2019 compensation lawyer Joe Miller Esq. has been fighting for injured workers for more than 25 years. He\u2019s helped thousands of employees get just recoveries for the injuries and illnesses which are work-related. He also keeps current with the new trends and new laws.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019ve been involved in any type of workplace accident or think your illness is related to work, speak with an experienced North Carolina and Virginia workers\u2019 compensation attorney. You can reach attorney Joe Miller, Esq., at <\/span><b>888-667-8295<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. or fill out my online <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/contact-us\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">contact form<\/span><\/a> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">to schedule an appointment. Workers now can also complete our <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/free-workers-comp-case-eval\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">New Electronic Case Review<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. It\u2019s a new way of communicating with clients that we\u2019re offering &#8211; to allow workers to contact us remotely.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There are many 2020 developments that will affect workers\u2019 compensation for both employees and employers in 2021 and the coming years. Many of these developments are related to COVID-19. Other developments, according to CMR Risk &amp; Insurance , include the use of telemedicine, the rise of mega claims, and the rise of comorbidities. Employers across &#8230; <\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more-container\"><a title=\"Workers\u2019 Compensation Trends for 2021\" class=\"read-more button\" href=\"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/workers-compensation-trends-for-2021\/#more-5191\" aria-label=\"Read more about Workers\u2019 Compensation Trends for 2021\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[231,31],"tags":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Joe Miller","author_link":"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/author\/jmiller\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"There are many 2020 developments that will affect workers\u2019 compensation for both employees and employers in 2021 and the coming years. Many of these developments are related to COVID-19. Other developments, according to CMR Risk &amp; Insurance , include the use of telemedicine, the rise of mega claims, and the rise of comorbidities. Employers across&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5191"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5191"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5191\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5191"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5191"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/joemillerinjurylaw.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5191"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}