Author: Megan Vaniman
NLRB rules it’s your right to be unhappy at work
Want to be unhappy at work? Now grumpy employees have the law on their side. The Communications Workers of America Local 7011 Union challenged T-Mobile’s employee handbook clause requiring employees to “maintain positive work environment by communicating in a manner that is conducive to effective working relationships…” Federal law gives employees the…
SBH 2016 Race for Justice Sponsor
SBH is a proud sponsor of the 2016 Race for Justice. The Race for Justice, now in its 16th year, helps raise funds for the St. Andrew Legal Clinic (SALC). SALC is a non-profit law firm that provides low-cost legal services to families in crisis. SALC is committed to providing security for…
New Bill Alters Timeline for Initial Time Loss Payment
On January 1, 2016, House Bill 2797 went into effect, modifying when initial temporary disability payments must be made. Prior to January 1, 2016, if there was medical authorization for payment of time loss benefits, the insurer was required to begin paying benefits no later than 14 days after the…
Reminder-CDA Requirements
A Claims Disposition Agreement—better known as a CDA—is a great tool to settle accepted claims. Once a claim is accepted, the claimant retains rights to medical services for the compensable injury. A CDA does not release a claimant’s right to these services. Over the summer, we saw the Board clarify…
SBH Prevails before Court of Appeals on Case Addressing Occupational Disease Analysis
In Luton v. Willamette Valley Rehabilitation Center, 432 Or App 487 (2015), claimant filed a claim for right wrist pain. He testified that on April 5, 2010 he was doing a job requiring him to wrap sticks with a band when he felt a tearing in his cartilage. He experienced…
Oregon Supreme Court hears oral arguments in Brown v. SAIF
By: Megan Vaniman In May 2014, the Oregon Court of Appeals issued Brown v. SAIF, 262 Or App 640 (2014). The case changed the test for closing an accepted combined condition claim. Prior to the case, in order to close a combined condition claim, a carrier had to prove the…
Could an Increase in Assessed Attorney Fees be Coming?
By: Megan Vaniman House Bill 2764 was introduced to the House Floor on April 20, 2015. HB 2764, spearheaded by the Oregon Trial Lawyers Association, is wide-reaching and proposes to increase or create new bases for attorney fee awards. HB 2764 has the potential to significantly increase employers’ workers’ compensation…
Managing Chiropractic Care in Oregon
By: Megan Vaniman Chiropractic care is often frequent and long-lasting. Oregon Workers’ Compensation laws limit the time a chiropractic doctor can act as an attending physician. ORS 656.005(12)(b)(B)(i). However, a claimant can continue to receive chiropractic care if an otherwise authorized attending physician continues to prescribe it. Once the new…
Brown v. SAIF: End of the Combined Condition?
A recent Court of Appeals decision changes the test for closing an accepted combined condition claim. What does Brown v. SAIF mean for employers and insurers? In Brown v. SAIF, SAIF initially accepted a lumbar strain and was later ordered to accept a lumbar strain combined with lumbar disc disease…
