Commission Issues Annual Report on California's Workplace Health and Safety and Workers' Compensation Systems.SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 19, 1999-- This year's annual report of the California California (kăl'ĭfôr`nyə), most populous state in the United States, located in the Far West; bordered by Oregon (N), Nevada and, across the Colorado River, Arizona (E), Mexico (S), and the Pacific Ocean (W). Commission on Health and Safety and Workers' Compensation workers' compensation, payment by employers for some part of the cost of injuries, or in some cases of occupational diseases, received by employees in the course of their work. includes a recommendation to thoroughly review the state workers' compensation system to decrease wage loss to disabled workers and increase the number of injured in·jure tr.v. in·jured, in·jur·ing, in·jures 1. To cause physical harm to; hurt. 2. To cause damage to; impair. 3. workers returning to work. "The commission is concerned with the appropriate types and levels of benefits to compensate workers sustaining industrial injuries and illnesses, with a particular focus on return to work," said Christine Baker, executive officer. "The commission focused its attention on the impact of the reform legislation on the community, various aspects of California's workplace health and safety and workers' compensation systems, and the operations of state agencies charged with carrying out those programs." Their annual report recommends: -0-
-- Improving the benefit notice program, which is a key
communication link between the workers' compensation claims
administrator and the injured worker that keeps the worker
informed on changes in the status of his/her claim.
-- Standardizing forms and procedures used in the district offices
of the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board.
-- Simplifying the payment process for workers' compensation
benefits.
-- Revising the system of state audits of workers' compensation
insurers, self insured employers and third-party administrators.
A special section of the 1998-99 annual report to the Legislature legislature, representative assembly empowered to enact statute law. Generally the representatives who compose a legislature are constitutionally elected by a broad spectrum of the population. describes changes in workers' compensation costs and benefits since the 1993 reform legislation. "The commission has determined that the workers' compensation community -- employees, employers, insurers, evaluators, third-party administrators and benefit providers -- believes that the workers' compensation system is still too complex and needs further simplification sim·pli·fy tr.v. sim·pli·fied, sim·pli·fy·ing, sim·pli·fies To make simple or simpler, as: a. To reduce in complexity or extent. b. To reduce to fundamental parts. c. and modification A change or alteration in existing materials. Modification generally has the same meaning in the law as it does in common parlance. The term has special significance in the law of contracts and the law of sales. in certain areas," said Baker. The commission is charged with evaluating the workplace health and safety and workers' compensation systems in California and recommending administrative or legislative modifications to improve their operation. The commission was established to conduct a continuing examination of the workers' compensation system and of the state's activities to prevent industrial injuries and occupational diseases, and to examine those programs in other states. The annual report and other commission publications are available on the Internet Internet Publicly accessible computer network connecting many smaller networks from around the world. It grew out of a U.S. Defense Department program called ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network), established in 1969 with connections between computers at the at the California Department of Industrial Relations' home page at www.dir.ca.gov See .gov and GovNet. (networking) gov - The top-level domain for US government bodies. . Information about the commission may be accessed by choosing either 'Occupational Safety & Health' or 'Workers' Compensation. |
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