Breaking news coming straight from the Department of Labor and Industries (L&I): Employer Workers’ Compensation insurance rates are going down this upcoming year, for record 3rd year in a row. L&I rates news release L&I issued a news bulletin today confirming that employer rates for workers’ compensation benefits are going down on January 1, […]
Has L&I lost its way? As an agency, I think that L&I might have forgotten its purpose. What is L&I and what are its duties? The Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) is the agency responsible for administering the Industrial Insurance Act in Washington State. This Act, also known as RCW 51, was created […]
When an employer prevents or tries to prevent an injured worker from filing a claim, it is called L&I claim suppression or workers’ compensation claim suppression. It occurs more often that you might expect. Despite the prevalence, I don’t think accusations of L&I claim suppression are taken as seriously as they should be. Rules […]
This week has been very busy. Among many other things, I deposed several attending providers and attended litigation matters at the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals (BIIA). Every time I depose a medical provider, it reminds me of the supreme importance of the attending provider in L&I workers’ compensation claims. The opinion of the […]
On October 22, the Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) adopted rule changes relating to vocational services. The new rules will go into effect on January 1, 2020. The new rule language can be found on the L&I website. Priority of returning injured workers to work Many of the changes are not substantial. However, […]
For the past six months, the Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) investigated the fatal crane collapse that happened in Seattle last April. Today, L&I announced it issued citations and fines to three companies for safety violations that relate to the fatal collapse and loss of life. The L&I investigation L&I found that nearly […]
Last week I was in a coworker’s office. We were discussing a document and I moved forward to look at the computer screen. I noticed an open file drawer and stepped around it. However, after looking at the document I forgot all about the open drawer. I turned around and walked right into the drawer. […]
October 1, 2019 marked my one-year anniversary at Reck Law, PLLC – Workers’ Compensation Attorneys. As I reflect on the year, I’m encouraged by the progress we’ve made. We’ve forged new relationships with existing Casey & Casey, P.S. clients after taking over their workers’ comp law firm. We also continued taking responsibility for the great […]
Have you heard of a drug formulary? How would you know what medication is covered under your L&I claim? Generally, a drug formulary is a list of prescription medications approved under a given health insurance policy. For L&I claims and workers’ compensation claims in Washington State, the Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) has its […]
The value of time-loss compensation benefits is based upon wages a person was getting at the time of work injury or occupational disease manifestation. If the person was working a second job, the value of that income must also be included in the wage computation. The Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) computes monthly wages […]