“Sitting is as bad as smoking.” 10,000 Americans a day turn 65, increasing the possibility of comorbid conditions on claims. Claims with a comorbidity diagnosis are increasing. A comorbid diagnosis can give the provider, injured worker and payer more realistic expectations for return to work and recovery. Eric Patten, Director of Clinical Management and Complex Care, One Call Care Management, and Richard Graham, Director, Workers’ Compensation, SEPTA, discussed what they referred to as “Pandora’s box” of comorbid conditions at the RIMS 2017 Annual Conference. Some common comorbid conditions are obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, depression, and insomnia. Mental health issues
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Companies are increasingly asking their risk leaders to move into areas traditionally outside the realm of insurance, claims and risk control. This session at the RIMS 2017 Annual Conference and Exhibition illustrated how to take on the responsibilities and the knowledge that come with new duties in governance, compliance, ethics and audit.  Speakers included:  Lance Ewing, EVP Global Risk Management, Cotton Holdings, Inc. Jennifer Santiago, Director Risk Management & Investigations, Novartis Pharmaceutical Corporation Corporate governance is a system of rules, practices and processes by which a company is directed and controlled. Governance is a key element of risk management as
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Employee health took center stage during Monday’s Wellness ZENter presentations at RIMS. Dave North, President and CEO at Sedgwick, kicked off the day with a corporate wellness discussion with Shawn Leavitt, Senior Vice President of Global Benefits at Comcast. They highlighted the importance of wellness for individuals and populations, and how health and productivity impact business performance. The risk management industry has built an entire infrastructure around trying to take care of injured employees in an efficient way, but it has become complex for the employee with multiple phone numbers to call and forms to fill out. Accolade offers a
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During a session at the RIMS 2017 Annual Conference, Kevin Glennon, VP of Clinical Programs, One Call Care Management, and Markie Davis, Risk Manager, State of Colorado, discuss medical marijuana. As the push for legalization continues, let’s explore the hailstorm of medical, legal and regulatory questions this brings. Federal Law The Controlled Substances Act categorizes marijuana as Schedule 1 substance, with a high potential for abuse and no legitimate therapeutic uses, possession for personal use is a misdemeanor, cultivation and distribution are felonies. Currently 28 states now have legalized marijuana for medicinal use. Since marijuana is a schedule 1 substance
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Although a great deal of attention is paid to cost control initiatives in the workers’ compensation and healthcare arenas, liability costs are escalating for many organizations. This session at the RIMS 2017 Annual Conference and Exhibition discussed the factors driving increasing claims and litigation costs. Speakers:  Alan Gier, Global Director, Corporate Risk Management & Insurance, General Motors Company Anthony DeFelice, Casualty Practice Leader, Aon Corporation Andrew Barberis, Global Claims Officer for Excess Casualty & Healthcare Professional Liability, AIG Morgan O’Rourke, Director of Publications and Editor-in-Chief, RIMS The casualty market has been challenging for a long time. The industry hasn’t experienced
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At the RIMS 2017 Annual Conference, Timothy McCarty, AVP Risk Control, Trident Public Risk, and Jennifer Stancil, Risk Management Specialist, New Hanover County, discuss distracted driving, how to understand the problem and its risk management implications. We live in a society that we are very busy so we try to do everything in the car. So many distractions can occur while we are driving. This is very dangerous. There have been improvements over the past several years. These improvements include roundabouts and railing on the side of streets and highways. Fatals are still up 8% in 2015. This will continue
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According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, from 2015 to 2016, the number of police officers shot and killed in the United States increased by 44 percent. Retaliatory violence directed at officers has also jumped. This session at the RIMS 2017 Annual Conference and Exhibition addressed how the increase of violence against law enforcement affects public entities everywhere.  Speakers included: Darryl DeSousa, Deputy Police Commissioner, Baltimore Police Department Barry Scott, Risk Manager, City of Philadelphia Mark Walls, Vice President of Communications & Strategic Analysis, Safety National In 2017, 34 police officers were shot in the line of duty
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Mario Pecoraro, CEO from Alliance Worldwide Investigative Group, Inc. and Peter Roueche from Eastman Chemical Company spoke at the RIMS 2017 Annual Conference about workplace violence and patterns of behavior a worker might exhibit before a tragedy happens. Warning signs of people at risk include: typical behaviors, trends and profiles of aggressors, and mitigation factors leading to a breakdown with preventative measures. Behaviors can either be obvious ones or not so obvious. The obvious behaviors include unexplained behavior, absenteeism, repeated violation of company policies, emotionally charged, and depression. The other behaviors that might not seem so obvious are problems at
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At the RIMS 2017 Annual Conference, Hester Shaw, Internal Control Framework Director, GSK, and Sean Murphy, CEO, Lootok, lead a session titled Risk Shrink: The Human Element of Risk. The human element of risk is normally the one left off, but is one of the most important aspects in risk management. Each person behaves different in different situations based on their experiences and backgrounds. One speaker gave an example of two employees who were in Bueno Aires and were confronted by two strangers. The strangers tried to take their bags. Each woman responded differently based on their experience. One women
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Presenters took a critical look at the risk management landscape in this session at the RIMS 2017 Annual Conference and Exhibition to anticipate what issues may be on the horizon. Speakers included:  David North, President & CEO, Sedgwick, Inc. Michael Fenlon, Sr. Director, Corporate Risk Management, United Parcel Service David Stills, VP, Risk Management, Walmart Stores, Inc. Workers’ Compensation Workers’ compensation has been in flux, but it’s still front of mind. There’s a lot of talk about alternatives and it’s good how this is sparking discussion in the industry. If you think back at what the system was created to
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