Texas Court Rejects Job Search Cases

The Texas Supreme Court denied two requests to review claims that the state’s Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) is improperly awarding supplemental income benefits to some injured workers who failed to provide proof they’ve been looking for jobs.
Two carriers, Accident Fund Insurance Co. of America and the Texas Cotton Ginner’s Trust, each said the law explicitly requires those applying for supplemental insurance benefits to provide copies of job applications that they’ve submitted.
DWC said in its court filings that it has allowed injured workers seeking SIB to state, or attest, they’ve applied for a job.
That action, which is subject to perjury penalties, advances the program’s objectives to encourage workers to apply for all jobs and not just those that require completing a paper or electronic application.
READ MORE

New Mexico state legislators is advancing a bill that, if enacted, would initially raise the cap on attorney’s fees to $30,000 and increase that to $34,000 by 2029.
A cap on discovery fees, typically tied to the pre-trial research, would be raised by $500 initially to $3,500 and increase to $4,500 by 2029.
The bill, HB 66, Workers’ Compensation Changes, would be the first increase in the cap since 2013.
There are 32 lawyers in the state who take workers’ compensation cases and most of them are located in Santa Fe and Albuquerque.
There have been cases in which a person has had to represent themselves because of the caps on attorney fees.
READ MORE

Chicago-based Aclaimant said it has been awarded a patent for streamlining incident reporting and workers’ compensation claims process that integrates mobile applications, GPS-enabled incident reporting, and seamless communication between all stakeholders.
Key features include automated location tracking of incident reports, immediate notifications to designated parties, and integrated tools for third-party administrators (TPAs) and insurance carriers.
“This patent marks a significant leap forward in modernizing risk management and insurance processes,” said Kathy Burns, CEO of Aclaimant, in a statement.
READ MORE