362 DIE

What if 362 children went missing and were discovered dead, in just one state in one year? What if 362 dogs were discovered murdered by being pushed off a 10 story building in one state in 2007? What if 362 prisoners were found dead in their cells of exposure to poison gas, in one state, in one year?
There would be an outcry. Investigations would start. Congressional committees would convene. Police commissioners would be fired. And that is only if the dogs died. For the prisoners the ACLU would sue everyone. The NAACP would allege that there is a conspriacy because most of the prisoners were minorities. Prison guards would be tried and convicted. For the kids, you couldn't even imagine the reaction. Every kid would be issued a GPS, free.
Last year 362 people died in Florida. They weren't children, or prisoners and they weren't even given the same consideration that dogs would get. This wasn't an anomaly. 360 died in 2006 in Florida. Compared to other states, Florida death toll went up. Most states death tolls went down. In New York, 234 down to 219. Texas went up 489 to 527, but then again Texas had a Bush as governor before Florida did. Why does that matter? Because the deaths are workers killed on the job.
Governors have a responsibility to these people and their families. To protect their citizens from the employers who ignore safety in search of profits.
The governors can't ignore dead prisoners, dead children or murdered dogs. They can ignore dead workers. Under Governor Bush the State of Florida abolished the division of safety. Under President Bush, former Governor of Texas, OSHA has been told to lay off business. At best small fines for major violations. Can you even imagine a governor telling the Florida Department of Law Enforcement not to investigate prisoner deaths? Not to prosecute child killers? Not to even look into dead dogs by the gross? No way.
But kill 362 employees in 2007, don't even expect to see film at eleven.

WHERE DOES THE MONEY GO?

If you want to know how much the insurance industry (including self-insureds) spends on indemnity benefits paid to claimants, that number can be obtained. If you want to know how much was spent on claimant attorney fees, that amount can be easily ascertained. But, if you want to know how much is skimmed in the guise of 'costs', tough luck. No one knows.

Unregulated costs can easily be funneled to companies owned by insurers. Unregulated costs can be paid to individuals and companies that 'kick back' to the top levels of the insurance industry. Does it happen? No one knows because no one has investigated.

Are the costs reasonable?

Consider this: The cost of transporting a claimant from his/her home to a doctor or therapy appointment can be double or triple or quadruple the fee paid to the 'regulated' doctor or therapist. The cabbie makes minimum wage. The company makes a fortune.

The medical transportation companies now include "interpretation" with the ride. More unregulated costs. The interpreter makes more per hour that the orthopedist!

Is there a requirement that carriers bid out the transportation service they use? No. Is anyone looking at the unregulated costs? No.

At the recent FWCI educational conference (Orlando, August 17-19), all of the unregulated industries were well represented. The slide show of sponsors was a real eye opener. I had no idea there were so many of these unregulated leeches.

Here's a partial list:

* Utilization review services. Sometimes they charge $30.00 to reduce a $75.00 bill to $60.00. That makes perfect sense. Unregulated.
* Peer reviews. Pay a doctor a large salary to write the words "not medically necessary" on forms. Then when a claim is filed, you can't use that doctor to testify at a hearing, so you have to hire an IME. Unregulated.
* IME doctors. One makes $500,000.00 per year just doing carrier IME's. Deposition fees are also unregulated.
* Surveillance. What a racket. They get paid for all those hours they don't see the claimant. Were they really there at all? Unregulated.
* MSA calculators. Get paid for taking a guess with no liability for being wrong. Guess high all the time and no one will ever find out. When was the last time you saw CMS reducing an MSA? Unregulated.
* Re-employment evaluators and job placement counselors. Bottom line is that these companies get paid $75.00 for each job lead they can copy off Monster.com.
* Medical case management. Another unregulated middleman to place obstacles in the way of delivery of good medical care.
* Structured settlement experts. They get unregulated fees from the carriers and commissions from the companies they use to provide annuities.
* FCE's. No more need be said.
* Fraud investigators (SIU). If they don't come up with a claimant to prosecute, they get paid anyway. Do they look for premium fraud...rarely.
* House counsel. Do they really represent the insured? Where does their profit go? Back to the carriers bottom line? I don't think so. Unregulated. Paralegals extra.

As one very bright man once said...follow the money. In Florida there is absolutely no incentive for carriers to keep costs down. They just get passed on to the employers, eventually. All a carrier has to do to get a rate increase is to spend money, even if it comes back to them.

This scheme needs grand jury oversight. Not a State grand jury, a Federal one.

My First Book Review-"Depraved Indifference"

Usually a book reviewer reads a book before reviewing it. I only finished reading two chapters of "Depraved Indifference" by Patrice Woeppel (IUnverse 2008)to know that this book MUST be read by anyone who is empowered by the citizens of any state to vote on amendments to the state's workers' compensation laws, or anyone who has the power to enforce the laws that already exist. Criminal prosecutors should also read this book to learn that the crime of homicide doesn't just take place in the hood during drug deals.

"Depraved Indifference" by Patrice Woeppel (IUnverse 2008) is a well researched look at the failure of workers' compensation laws to deliver the promise of fast, sure and adequate benefits based upon a no fault approach to compensating on-the-job injury and death. The author makes the case that miniscule benefits, the ability to starve out injured workers and their families, the lack of official oversight, the lack of meaningful penalties for violations and the lack of any criminal prosecution of employers for criminal acts of "depraved indifference" to human life, make for an unsafe workplace for millions of Americans. The numbers are staggering. It is an epidemic of death and economic destruction in the American workplace, unchecked by trial by jury to bring wrongdoers to the bar of justice. If a workers' compensation type scheme was put in place 100 years ago to compensate victims of products liability, we'd still be driving Pinto's and painting our baby carriages with lead. Our schools would be insulated with asbestos and childrens PJ's would still be highly flammable.
After Chapter 2, you have to stop reading for a bit, as I did. There is no way you can to Publix Supermarkets to pick up food for dinner. You won't want to eat dinner! If you read after dinner, you will just want to throw up. Maybe you will shop at Winn Dixie when your appetite returns. Why not Publix? Read the book. The title says it all. There is just no incentive built in to the workers' compensation scheme to make the workplace safer. The author calls for the return of the jury system. I agree.
When I feel well enough to finish reading, I'll post more thoughts here. Then I'll send my copy to Governor Crist. I urge all who read this posting to read the book (in softcover, about $19.95) and pass it along to one of your elected representatives, with a short note that says, "Fix this mess, now!"