Only “occupational” injuries are covered by workers’ compensation. To be “occupational” and thus compensable, the injury must “arise out of and be in the course and scope of employment.” All three distinct tests must all be satisfied for the injury to be compensable.
Why waivers of subrogation are requested is a question that results in blank stares and shoulder shrugs. Risk managers want them because they were in the previous contract their company entered into. Subcontractors further down the food chain request them because somebody else required it as a condition to being awarded the contract. Owners and…
Agents very rarely experience an employers’ liability claim; but this does not mean this important gap-filling coverage should not be understood. There are employee-related gaps in the commercial general liability (CGL) policy and the workers’ compensation (WC) policy that make this coverage a necessity. This primer allows a much clearer understanding of this important yet…
Constant debate swirls around the difference between independent contractors and employees. It seems that every contractor wants everyone to believe that everyone on the job site is an independent contractor; but we know that’s not true. Use these 17 “tests” to differentiate between a de facto employee and a true independent contractor.
Threats of specific kinds of flu and pandemics garner heavy media attention. When any disease strain threatens a large geographic area, it gets lots of press as the next pandemic. When these stories begin airing, the question is often asked, “Is ‘the pandemic du jour’ compensable under workers’ compensation?” This article discusses what is required…
Workers’ compensation, from a coverage standpoint, is the simplest coverage to understand and even explain. However, statutes and common laws serve to complicate the initial simplicity of workers’ compensation and complexity breeds errors.
A glossary of workers’ compensation terms.
Record flu seasons often garner heavy media attention. When any strain of the flu is in the news, whether it be Swine flu, Bird flu or 2018’s H3N2 strain the question is often asked, “Is flu compensable under workers’ compensation?” This article discusses what is required for an illness to be compensable under workers’ compensation.
Workers’ compensation, as a coverage, is simple. A worker gets hurt, the work comp policy pays – theoretically; that’s the simple part. The more complicated areas of workers’ compensation involve the state laws and legal doctrines applicable to workers’ comp. Two key areas of confusion are how many different types of employees are there and…
On any given day in the United States, perhaps 500,000 injured workers are under treatment for chronic pain; a great majority ingest opioids. There may well be 100,000 injured workers on long-term opioid treatment, some extending over two decades. But the use of opioids seems to be dropping.
