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The clock is ticking for Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker to sign legislation that some business owners said could open up companies in Illinois to worker injury lawsuits that are decades old and not covered by liability insurance. Senate Bill 1596 was pushed through the General Assembly in less than a month and is now nearing its 60-day mark, where Pritzker…

Nearly a third of all construction workers are employed in nonstandard work arrangements, according to a study recently released by the Center for Construction Research and Training. The report, Nonstandard Work Arrangements in the Construction Industry, found that a quarter of construction workers were classified as independent contractors and about 8% were classified as temporary workers, day laborers, on-call workers…

The purpose of hiring an investigator in workers' compensation cases is to observe and document the movements of an injured employee. This allows the defense interests to introduce first-hand evidence into a hearing on the merits to demonstrate what someone is doing and their functional abilities – when they do not think someone is watching. The first and most important…

Electronic prescribing, or e-prescribing, allows health care providers to securely send prescription information from their computer or tablet directly to pharmacies. E-prescribing isn't new, but it's gaining ground quickly as more and more states are considering a mandate on this prescription transmission method. E-prescribing has seen a wave of support over the years, and one notable reason is the opioid…

Claims leaders rank psychosocial issues as the number one barrier to successful claim outcomes, according to Rising Medical Solutions' 2016 Workers' Compensation Benchmarking Study survey. A new white paper, co-authored by study program director Rachel Fikes and industry journalist Peter Rousmaniere, shows how claims advocacy principles at The Hartford, CNA, Nationwide, and Albertsons Companies are taming the effects of psychosocial…

Summary judgment was properly awarded to an insurance company that denied a request to defend a construction company in a negligence suit, the Indiana Court of Appeals found Tuesday. The judges ruled the terms of the policy only obligated the insurance company after a certain amount of damages had been paid. When Walsh Construction Co. began construction a traffic exchange…

You hire new employees with the intent to maintain or increase your production and profitability, and not to increase your workplace injuries. Unfortunately, safety in the workplace is often overlooked on the new hire checklist. In fact, 40 percent of injured employees have been on the job less than one year (Occupational Safety and Health Administration). You can reduce your…