The Impact of Healthcare Reform was listed as “hot topic” at the California Workers’ Compensation & Risk Conference, a session where stakeholders gathered to gain better understanding of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and its impact on workers’ compensation. This session was moderated by Mark Walls, Vice President Communications & Strategic Analysis at Safety National, […]

Is the workers’ compensation system still a grand bargain for employers and injured employees? Industry bloggers gathered at The California Workers’ Comp & Risk Conference in Dana Point to answer this question with an overwhelming “NO!” The panel featured Mark Walls from Safety National and the Work Comp Analysis Group, David DePaolo from WorkCompCentral.com, Dale […]

This panel at the California Workers Comp & Risk Conference in Dana Point addressed current issues and best practices in regards to Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP), Medicare Set Asides (MSA) and Section 111 reporting. Panelists were moderater Mark Walls, VP Communications & Strategic Analysis at Safety National, Rafael Gonzalez, Vice President at Helios, Jessica Smythe, […]

The Opiate Prescribing in Workers’ Compensation session at the California Workers’ Comp & Risk Conference in Dana Point offered some bold statements – opioids are not just a workers’ comp problem, they are a societal problem, and it is going to take us a decade to get out of this problem, starting with the doctor. […]

This session at the California Workers Comp & Risk Conference in Dana Point outlined projects that have successfully leveraged technology to provide timely, actionable changes that resulted in loss reduction. Panelists included Karen Kridel-Schwabe, Senior Manager Risk Management at The Walt Disney Company, Kurt Leisure, VP Risk Services at The Cheesecake Factory, Robert Dickerson, Senior […]

Workers’ compensation claims handling can be extremely complicated, especially in California. The session at the California Workers Comp & Risk Conference in Dana Point titled “Lets Get Ready To Rumble” focused on discussing a variety of issues that make a difficult situation even worse. The panel consisted of Bill Goldstein – Wells Fargo, Robert Rassp […]

This open mic session at the California Workers Comp & Risk Conference in Dana Point featured insurance market E- and C-Suite leaders, senior management and industry stakeholders identifying emerging market trends that are important to employers in California. Panelists included moderator Pamela Ferrandino, National Practice Leader at Willis North America, Bill Rabl, Chief Opperating Officer […]

The California Workers’ Compensation & Risk Conference in Dana Point opened with a session featuring employers and stakeholders in the industry weighing in on the current state of California Workers’ Compensation and what’s on the horizon for 2015. Panelists were moderator Mark Walls, VP Communications & Strategic Analysis at Safety National, William Zachry, VP of […]

The final panel I moderated was the State of the WC Industry Panel. The panelists were Gordon Clemons from Corvel, Al Hammermiller from UPS, Scott Hudson from Gallagher Bassett, and Jim Wucherpfenning from Travelers. Among the issues discussed included: • How does CA compare to other states: The overall consensus was higher costs and a […]

The panelists for this session were three attorneys, Adam Dombchik, Michael Gaston, and Michael Sullivan. There were two cases that they spent the most time discussing. Dubon vs World Restoration This case involved a UR / IMR dispute. The WCAB ruled that if a UR decision has a “material defect” then the requirement for IMR […]