Category: Changes in WC law

May 22, 2023
by Erling Hanna

Changes coming to retroactive temporary disability authorizations in Oregon

In our prior blog post, here, we discussed the changes coming under House Bill 4138, as it relates to claim closure and overpayment issues. We…

May 5, 2023
by Kevin Anderson

New Claim Closure and Overpayment Rules in Oregon Starting January 1, 2024

As we have touched on before, there will be some major changes next year to how we process claims, particularly when it comes to claim…

January 25, 2023
by Megan Vaniman

Proposed Oregon bill to disallow no-rehire provisions in workers’ compensation settlements

AFL-CIO (a conglomerate of union groups) has proposed legislation to prohibit no re-hire/reemployment/reinstatement clauses in workers’ compensation settlements. Specifically, the proposed legislation would only allow…

December 22, 2022
by Evan Novotny

Permanent Rule Changes Coming to Oregon Workers’ Compensation!

There are new and significant rule changes to Oregon Workers Compensation. These will affect the way workers’ compensation benefits are paid and calculated.  Additionally, notable…

November 30, 2022
by Rachel Shinville

Washington L&I Proposed Changes to Presumptive Coverage of PTSD as an Occupational Disease – Feedback Due by January 13

On November 22, 2022, the Department of Labor & Industries filed a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking to amend WAC 296-14-300 to clarify coverage of…

November 16, 2022
by Stephen Verotsky

New Assessed Attorney Fee Rules For Reconsideration Proceedings in Oregon

In September 2021 the Oregon Court of Appeals issued its decision in Dancingbear v. SAIF and determined a worker’s attorney can be awarded an assessed…

June 1, 2022
by Elyse Waters

Oregon WCD Issues Proposed Draft Rules for Dancingbear

Last October, SBH attorney Anna McFaul wrote a blog covering the Dancingbear v. SAIF decision issued by the Oregon Court of Appeals. As you likely…

May 10, 2022
by Kevin Anderson

Oregon WCD Starts Rulemaking Process for Timeloss Bill (HB 4138)

The WCD held the first public meeting on May 3rd to address issues related to implementing HB 4138 made several changes to processing temporary disability…

April 6, 2022
by David White

New L&I Rules Regarding IMEs Take Effect April 23, 2022

Starting April 23, 2022 the Washington Department of Labor & Industries will be implementing new rules regarding IME notices and what constitutes a “case progress…

October 6, 2021
by Anna McFaul

Oregon Court of Appeals Allows Assessed Fee When Order on Reconsideration Awards Additional Temporary Disability

In the recent Dancingbear case, the Court of Appeals awarded an assessed attorney fee when additional temporary disability benefits were obtained through the reconsideration process….

March 24, 2021
by Kevin Anderson

Oregon Legislature Considering Dismantling Self-Insurance in Oregon

The Senate Committee on Labor and Business recently held a public hearing on two concerning pieces of legislation, SB-801 and SB-802. While the hearing initially…

January 12, 2021
by Megan Vaniman

New Oregon 801 Form Effective January 1, 2021

The Workers’ Compensation Division implemented a new 801 and 827 form–effective January 1, 2021. The new 801/827 forms remove the Social Security Number. The removal…

December 21, 2020
by Kara Cogswell Kidder

New Year, New Restrictions On IMEs in Washington

New Year, New Restrictions On IMEs in Washington With the new year, comes new restrictions on independent medical examinations in Washington. On January 1, legislative…

October 14, 2020
by Evan Novotny

Oregon WCD Issues Revised Temporary Rule on Claims for COVID-19 or Exposure to COVID-19

The Workers’ Compensation Division has issued OAR 436-060-0141,  a temporary rule addressing claims for COVID-19 and claims for exposure to COVID-19. The rule will remain…

August 26, 2020
by Kara Cogswell Kidder

Washington Self-Insured Employers Face Increased Penalty Amounts Starting September 1

Self-insured employers in Washington should be aware that penalty amounts increase on September 1, 2020, as a result of HB 2409, passed earlier this year….

August 5, 2020
by Megan Vaniman

Oregon Workers’ Compensation Mental Health Presumption of Compensability

Presumption—it’s a scary word in the world of Oregon workers’ compensation. Last year Oregon passed Senate Bill 507—now codified at ORS 656.802(7)—creating a presumption of…

July 27, 2020
by Kevin Anderson

Trial Attorneys and Unions Pushing for COVID-19 Presumption Legislation

On June 23, 2020, Governor Brown directed the Management-Labor Advisory Committee (MLAC) to explore any gaps in our current workers’ compensation system related to COVID-19,…

June 3, 2020
by Elyse Waters

In the midst of COVID-19 pandemic, Oregon Court of Appeals issues troubling ruling for processing new/omitted condition claims

The Oregon Court of Appeals issued its decision in Coleman v. SAIF, 304 Or App 122 (2020) on May 13, 2020. Claimant filed a claim…

April 8, 2020
by Kevin Anderson

Oregon Workers’ Compensation Rule Updates During COVID-19 Crisis

Needless to say, there have been a lot of changes recently, not just in our daily lives, but also in claim processing issues. The WCD…

February 25, 2020
by Laurel

SBH Attorney Aaron Bass Testifies in Front of Washington State Senate

Attorney Aaron Bass testified on behalf of Washington Self-Insurers Association in opposition to SHB 2409. The bill not only increases the penalty amounts, it imposes…

June 6, 2019
by Andrew Evenson

Oregon Supreme Court rules that medical services for conditions caused in material part by the work injury incident, not just accepted conditions, are compensable

In a much-awaited decision, the Oregon Supreme Court recently ruled in Garcia-Solis v. Farmers Ins. Co., 365 Or 26 (2019) that medical services for conditions…

February 16, 2018
by Kevin Anderson

New Average Weekly Wage Calculation Rules

The Workers’ Compensation Division recently issued new rules for calculating average weekly wage. The new rules will apply to claims with dates of injury on…

December 12, 2017
by Lauren Oda

Worker’s Compensation Division Addresses House Bill 2338 Regarding Benefits to Surviving Children

The Workers’ Compensation Division issued an Addendum to Bulletin No. 377 on December 8, 2017. The Division issued the addendum to address House Bill 2338,…

September 15, 2017
by Andrew Evenson

Oregon Workers’ Compensation Division announces new administrative rules in response to Brown v. SAIF

On March 30, 2017, the Oregon Supreme Court issued a much-awaited decision in Brown v. SAIF Corporation, 361 Or 241 (2017), ruling that the term…

April 12, 2017
by Kevin Anderson

Oregon WCD issues Temporary Rules Clarifying Claim Closure Requirements

In our efforts to keep you apprised of the latest developments regarding the Oregon Supreme Court’s decision in Brown (see Andrew’s blog on the case…