Note: Workers’ Comp Advisor will take its annual summer break starting Monday, July 3, and resume daily publication Monday, July 17. Happy Fourth of July to all of our valued subscribers!

Managing adept employees and workers’ comp

• Skilled work tends to be hazardous, which, unfortunately, may result in an on-the-job injury that requires businesses to follow a specific protocol to file and manage workers’ compensation claims.
• In 2021, there were more than 2.6 million nonfatal work injuries reported in the U.S.
• Meeting the demands of these various HR functions can burden teams, but Many businesses are leveraging can provide the specialized attention required to craft training programs, provide employee handbooks and maintain labor law compliance.
• That means businesses spend less time figuring out how to satisfy job requirements and more time bidding on work.
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Ohio doctor convicted of illegally distributing opioids an

• A federal jury in Columbus, Ohio, convicted a doctor for illegally prescribing buprenorphine and other controlled substances in violation of the Controlled Substances Act.
• Eskender Getachew of Galena, unlawfully prescribed opioids and benzodiazepines to his patients. This included prescribing Subutex, which has a high risk of abuse and diversion, to patients for whom the drug is not indicated.
• The number of pills Getachew prescribed depended on the amount of money patients paid at their office visits. Getachew was aware of several reports that patients were selling their Subutex, but his prescribing continued unabated.
• The jury convicted Getachew of 11 counts of unlawful distribution of a controlled substance. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each count. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
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Vocational evidence impacting workers’ comp

• Vocational evidence has seen a resurgence in recent years as the applicant’s bar attempts to obtain Awards of 100% permanent total disability.
• One unfortunate side effect of this resurgence is the development of the complex concept of “vocational apportionment.”
• A workers’ compensation administrative law judge issued an unapportioned Award of 100% permanent and total disability.
• The applicant alleged two injuries — an injury to the neck, upper extremities and left shoulder, as well as a cumulative trauma to the bilateral upper extremities.
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Kitty Boyte receives the Sue Ann Head Workers’ Compensation Award

• The Tennessee Bureau announced Katherine “Kitty” Boyte as the 5th recipient of the Sue Ann Head Award for Excellence in Workers’ Compensation.
• The award was presented to Ms. Boyte at a lunch ceremony during the Tennessee Workers’ Compensation Educational Conference on June 15, 2023 in Murfreesboro.
• Boyte is a partner at Peterson White, LLP in Brentwood, Tennessee and has practiced law almost exclusively in the realm of workers’ compensation since 1988.
• She is a frequent speaker and contributor in the workers’ compensation industry.
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