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OSHA’s Cry for Safety in NV

The Nevada Occupational Health & Safety Section (OSHA) of the Division of Industrial Relations is hoping to stop one of the most dangerous forms of distracted driving. That’s why it is encouraging employers to protect employees on the road for work by banning texting while driving. In Nevada, in 2010, 181 collisions and 232 incidences of property damage occurred because of distractions due to the use of cell phones, including telephone calls and texting, and electronic equipment, OSHA said. Three people died in 2010 as a result of cell phone usage while driving. The agency believes employers are pivotal to… Read More »OSHA’s Cry for Safety in NV

NC Senate Reviews Workers Comp Reform Bills

A comprehensive workers compensation reform package is headed to North Carolina’s Senate after receiving final approval in the state House. The House’s adoption Wednesday of H.B. 709 is “a huge win for the business community,” the Raleigh-based North Carolina Chamber said in a statement. The bill, sponsored by state Rep. R. Dale Folwell, R-Winston-Salem, resulted from extensive negotiations involving labor, employer groups and claimant attorneys. Among other measures, the legislation limits the duration of temporary total disability benefits to 500 weeks, but allows workers to appeal that cap under certain conditions, according to the chamber. North Carolina currently does not… Read More »NC Senate Reviews Workers Comp Reform Bills

Live in VA? Review your HO for Hurricane Coverage

Virginia regulators are urging homeowners to review their insurance policies with the start of hurricane season this week. The State Corporation Commission, which regulates insurers, said Wednesday that some companies automatically include a deductible for wind or hurricane losses in their policies, while others offer them as an option. These deductibles can be written as a flat amount or can be applied to the loss as a percentage of the insurance coverage on the dwelling. Regulators note that much of hurricane-related damage is caused by flooding, which often goes uncovered by insurance policies. Flood insurance is available separately through the… Read More »Live in VA? Review your HO for Hurricane Coverage

Workers Compensation System in Illinois is Uncertain

Illinois lawmakers continued to grapple Tuesday with legislation that would change the state’s workers compensation system, including the possibility of abolishing the system. The Illinois House on Sunday failed to pass H.B. 1698 on a 55-39 vote, with the bill needing 60 votes to win approval of the measure that would have made sweeping changes in the state’s workers comp system. The bill had passed the Illinois Senate on a 46-8 vote on Saturday. Proponents of the reform said it would have cut between $500 million to $700 million a year from the program’s cost by reducing medical provider rates by… Read More »Workers Compensation System in Illinois is Uncertain

World Health Organization and Dangerous Mobile Phone

“Using a mobile phone may increase the risk of developing certain types of brain tumors and consumers should consider ways of reducing their exposure, World Health Organization cancer experts said Tuesday” – news  information. Hey, are you guys insane over at WHO? Is this something you want to brag about after the swine flue failure? Don’t you think we are grown up alright to understand that a cell phone may possess risks? A few years ago I came accross this youtube home video: Making popcord using the power of cell phone signal   After watching this video I got me… Read More »World Health Organization and Dangerous Mobile Phone

Texas Votes for Certificates of Insurance

A measure recently passed in Texas will require regulatory approval of p&c certificate of insurance forms provided to insureds as evidence of coverage.  Bill 425 in particular regulate how certificate of insurance should be issued and can not be ammended. Should the agent or company violate the rule, the penalty could be up to $100.

Prevent Human Error in Workplace if You Can

If a worker makes a mistake that leads to an accident, should that employee take the blame? Maybe not, according to Indiana University of Pennsylvania Safety Sciences professor Jan Wachter. Wachter believes that human error in the workplace, while not completely preventable, can be managed by better tools to motivate and engage workers in the safety process. “While human error has been associated with the majority of incidents in the workplace, it can be managed through a variety of mechanisms. But motivation and worker engagement may be the keys to human-error reduction,” he said. Wachter will test this theory in… Read More »Prevent Human Error in Workplace if You Can

Colorado Workers’ Comp Reforms

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper has signed legislation approving state workers’ compensation reforms. Senate Bill 11-199, sponsored in the House by James Riesberg, D, and sponsored in the Senate by Lois Tochtrop, D: Requires an employer to admit liability for reasonable and necessary medical benefits in claims in which an authorized treating physician recommends medical benefits after maximum medical improvement if there is no contrary medical opinion in the record. Permit parties in connection with case hearings, as long as they have attorney representation to engage in discovery without need for permission. Require the employer to provide advance payments to claimants,… Read More »Colorado Workers’ Comp Reforms

Make Sure to Insure Your Cargo in California

Very surprising news we got today from the Golden State:  California led the nation in cargo thefts last year, with 247 of 747 thefts in the U.S. that were estimated at $171 million, according to a report released last week by the National Insurance Crime Bureau. Texas was the next most-targeted state for cargo thefts, with 91 in 2010. There also were 66 in Florida, 56 in Illinois, 40 in Tennessee and 39 in Georgia, according to the Des Plaines, Ill.-based NICB’s ForeCAST Report.  Electronics were most often the target of cargo theft, with 139 incidents. There were 108 cases… Read More »Make Sure to Insure Your Cargo in California

Travelers Expands Coverage for Healthcare Organizations

Travelers has unveiled new property coverages through its IndustryEdge product for healthcare organizations. New coverages include: Ordinance or Law – Communicable Disease Contamination Coverage – This coverage pays the costs incurred to clean up and remove communicable disease contamination from a premise when mandated by an ordinance or law. Condemnation of Medical Property – This coverage pays for loss of visibly undamaged medical property that a government regulatory authority has condemned as a direct result of a covered cause of loss. Unintentional Errors or Omissions – Failure to Report Locations – This coverage is extended when the insured unintentionally fails to… Read More »Travelers Expands Coverage for Healthcare Organizations