The 2017 legislative session may have been a relatively quiet one for Californians seeking workers’ compensation reform, but a closer look at lawmakers’ activity shows that significant changes are likely on the way in the next three years.
Many of our clients have shown an interest in curtailing cumulative trauma (CT) claims, which account for 10% of the claims in the Los Angeles and Long Beach regions, according to the Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau. In August, WCIRB Executive Vice President David Bellusci noted “sharp growth” in CT claims.
Assemblyman Adam Gray (D-Merced) introduced Assembly Bill 221 in January, which would have made it more difficult for applicants and lien claimants to collect on low-value CT claims. For instance, the bill would have barred employer liability for medical treatment if the applicant could not satisfy one of the following four criteria:
The bill would have also barred defendant liability for medical liens if the amount of the compromise and release was less than $25,000.
Despite the fact that the bill failed to make it out of the Assembly Insurance Committee, Gray vowed to not give up on CT reform in future legislative sessions. It’s natural to take such claims with some skepticism, but Gray has succeeded with controversial efforts in the past. He was the author of AB 1244, which was the bill that allowed the Division of Workers’ Compensation to stay or suspend lien claimants accused or convicted of criminal charges.
In June, Gray told WorkCompCentral that he is interested in targeting cappers with future legislation. In that article, WorkCompCentral’s intrepid team of journalists reported that they were able to arrange legal representation by posing as an injured worker and going through one of the companies facing criminal charges from the Orange County District Attorney.
Don’t be surprised if Gray targets the workers’ compensation system’s bad actors again in 2018.
Meanwhile, the California Applicants' Attorneys Association (CAAA) vowed to renew its efforts to push legislation barring apportionment in specific scenarios after Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed AB 570. This bill would have barred apportionment for physical injuries to pregnancy, childbirth, or other medical conditions related to pregnancy or childbirth.
Brown’s basis for vetoing the bill was that the workers’ compensation system already is gender-neutral and provides permanent disability for industrial injuries, and that the bill “would create a gender-based classification and would not be likely to withstand constitutional challenge.”
The bill was supported by most unions and CAAA, with insurance and employer lobbyists leading the opposition. Brown has vetoed similar bills in the past. CAAA blasted the governor with a statement criticizing his veto of this bill, and will likely try again in 2018 and thereafter.
Speaking of the governor, it’s important to note that Brown will not be around forever, as his term expires on Jan. 7, 2019. The primary election for the gubernatorial seat is on June 5, 2018, with the general election falling on Nov. 6. That means that Brown will have one last chance to sign or veto any bills before his term expires. The 2018 deadline date for Brown to sign new bills into law is Sept. 30.
Who will replace him? Well, the Los Angeles Times did an excellent job of listing all of the potential candidates in this election preview. Employers may want to note that one of the early favorites is Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is very popular with the marijuana lobby.
2017 Recap
With all that being said, let’s take a look at the most important pieces of legislation from the 2017 legislative session.
Most important bills signed into law by the governor that take effect in 2018 are:
Bills that were held over for lawmakers to consider during the 2018 legislative session:
A notable dead bill that never made it to the governor’s desk, but could come up again in the future, is SB 562, the “Healthy California Act,” which would have created a single-payer health care system and established a committee to study how to incorporate the workers’ compensation system. This bill was criticized as being a hastily created response to Republicans’ attempts to repeal or amend Obamacare, and never made it through the state Assembly.
John P. Kamin is a workers’ compensation defense attorney at Bradford & Barthel’s Tarzana location. He is WorkCompCentral's former legal editor. This blog post is reprinted with the firm's permission.
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