Risk & Business

Image via Wikipedia It seems that in Oregon the State Supreme Court ordered the agency responsible for handling work comp in that state, SAIF Corp., the state chartered agency that oversees compensation insurance , to pay for gastric bypass surgery for an injured worker that needed to undergo knee replacement surgery . The worker in question injured his knee on the job some years before. At that time he filed for compensation and had knee surgery . Some years later he was working in a bakery and reinjured the same knee. During the time between his first knee surgery and reinjury to the same knee he gained some weight. This time the doctor advised him that before he could have the knee repaired he should undergo gastric bypass in order to ensure a successful procedure to the knee. The state court decided that this was all related to his injury and should be covered under workers compensation. The decision actually seems to make sense.

Image via Wikipedia While recently reading the current issue of an insurance industry trade magazine , American Agent & Broker, I came across an article discussing workers compensation . The article, entitled "Workers' Comp: 7 Biggest Mistakes", discussed proactive steps the employer should consider in order to increase the chances of the injured worker returning to work quickly, and also cut down on the cost to the employer. Some steps mentioned are - meeting with care providers to discuss the care of the employee; having regular on site file reviews of the injured workers case; using a medical doctor of their choosing to review medical records and reports instead of relying solely on the adjuster to make medical decisions, and simply staying involved with the process from start to finish. They did throw in one other step that's quite important, asking for and receiving assistance from your agent. While the agent cannot get involved in the actual adjus...