California: 24 school districts in 10 counties disregard state school mask mandate

Last week, the Clovis, Wheatland and Western Placer school districts joined 22 other school districts to lift the mask mandates still ordered by the state in K-12 schools in California. An attorney who has been fighting on behalf of parents to fully reopen schools and to end the mask “mandates,” notes that California Department of Public Health has only issued non-binding recommendations that schools can disregard by law. California Globe

Critics say Kansas workers’ comp law is among worst in nation, but change is unlikely

In 2020, 8,851 Kansans were compensated for lost time after bring hurt at work, but critics say low lifetime caps on benefits and regulatory changes friendly to employers and insurance companies interested in lowering costs, mean that injured employees are surviving on less and the the system is long overdue for reform. Kansas has the lowest cap for workers compensation in the nation, blocking anyone, regardless of the age they are injured, from receiving more than $155,000 over the course of their lifetime. Kansas City Star

In New York, new webinar series for on COVID-19 and workers’ comp to begin

The New York State Workers Compensation Board is offering a new webinar series to help employees who believe they contracted COVID-19 on the job. The online sessions are targeted toward employees who have lost time from work, have ongoing medical problems, or fall into the category of “long haulers,” but is relevant to anyone who may have contracted the virus due to an exposure at work. WRGB (Albany)

Attorney discusses workers’ comp and gig economy

A veteran South Carolina attorney discusses how important workers’ compensation attorneys are both in fighting against efforts to weaken protections and in helping injured employees navigate a system that is increasingly adversarial and complex. Legal Talk Network