Category: Oregon Workers Compensation
Oregon Assessed Attorney Fees – The Vicious Circle
The Oregon’s Workers Compensation Board (“WCB”) recently issued an Order on Remand, awarding $68,300 for services litigating reasonableness of an initial attorney fee award. Karista…
Oregon Vocational Assistance – Authorization to Work in the US is No Longer a Requirement for Eligibility
An injured worker must meet certain conditions to be eligible for vocational assistance, typically the costliest aspect of a workers’ compensation claim. OAR 436-120-0145(2) lays…
Oregon WCB Confirms, No Compensable Claim: No Rule Violation, No Unreasonable Delay
In a recent legal decision, Rosita E. Peery, 77 Van Natta 15 (January 10, 2025), the Oregon Workers’ Compensation Board affirmed an Administrative Law Judge’s…
Oregon WCB Confirms Initial Notice of Acceptance Does Not Set a “Theory of the Case”
What is the difference between an injury, a claim, and an accepted condition? The answer, frustratingly, is “it depends.” But the Oregon Workers’ Compensation Board…
New Medical Services Rules Proposed by the OR WCD
On February 19, 2025, the WCD is holding a hearing to propose amendments to several medical services rules in OAR 436-009, 436-010, and 436-015. Many…
Oregon Workers’ Compensation End of Year Wrap Up: Let’s End on a High Note!
We welcomed 2024 with a slew of changes to the Oregon Revised Statutes and Oregon Administrative rules on Workers’ Compensation that impact and change how…
Important Changes to Oregon IME Appointment Notices in Effect as of October 1, 2024
Have you updated the bold language and formatting in your Oregon IME appointment notice template? In case you missed it, the Oregon Workers’ Compensation Division…
New denial appeal and hearing rights language requirements in Oregon Workers’ Compensation
As a reminder, the Oregon Workers’ Compensation Board recently revised Oregon Administrative Rule (OAR) 438-005-0055 to reflect changes to the required denial and hearing rights…
Stress of Navigating Oregon Workers’ Compensation: Possible Ground for Mental Health Condition?
Filing an Oregon Workers’ Compensation claim includes a range of administrative processes, from injury reports to claim closure, encompassing medical treatment, independent medical evaluations, entitlement…
Oregon Workers’ Compensation Division Reviewing Medical Service and Billing Rules Nov. 5th
The WCD is hosting an advisory committee meeting on November 5, 2024. You can find the agenda here including information about how to participate in…
Bridging Borders: Oregon’s Workers’ Compensation Reciprocity Explained
Out-of-State Employers When an out-of-state employee travels to Oregon for work and sustains an injury, it may result in an Oregon workers’ compensation claim, depending…
Oregon Workers’ Compensation Board issues decision expanding right to WRME
On September 16, 2024, a WCB Order on Review, Jon C. Landry, 76 Van Natta 462 (2024), expanded on the Court of Appeals ruling in…
Oregon WCB clarifies carrier’s obligation to accept or deny encompassed conditions
A WCB Order on Review, Collin Stringer, 76 Van Natta 462 (2024), distinguished conditions encompassed within previously accepted conditions are not new or omitted conditions….
Oregon Workers’ Compensation Rules change attorney fee caps in settlement and changes to mandatory denial language.
Previously, OAR 438-015-0050(1) and OAR 438-015-0052(1) allowed a workers’ attorney to receive up to 25% of the first $50,000 of DCS and CDA proceeds and…
Oregon Workers’ Compensation: Does it make sense for an insurer to appeal its own Notice of Closure?
In Oregon, the attending physician plays a crucial role throughout the duration of a workers’ compensation claim. For better or worse, the importance of the…
What type of medical services are compensable after a worker is medically stationary in Oregon?
A common question which arises in Oregon workers’ compensation claims process is what type of medical services will continue to be compensable once a worker…
Oregon Workers Compensation: Is the deposition of a medical arbiter a thing?
An impartial medical examination is typically scheduled as part of reconsideration proceedings when there is a disagreement about the impairment findings used to close a…
New Oregon Rule Governing Subsequent Temporary Disability Payments Beginning July 1, 2024
On July 15, 2024, the Oregon Workers’ Compensation Division issued an Industry Notice outlining the rule change for the payment of subsequent temporary disability benefits….
Oregon Attorney Fees in Certain Workers’ Compensation Matters Increased as of July 1, 2024
In Oregon Workers’ Compensation, attorney fees for representation of a claimant are controlled by statute. Certain attorney fees associated with penalties for unreasonable claim processing…
How exclusive is the exclusive remedy in Oregon Workers’ Compensation?
At the core of the Oregon workers’ compensation system is a compromise between workers’ and employers. Employers must provide benefits for work-related injuries even when…
Oregon Court of Appeals Upholds Nava Rule
In Nava v. SAIF, 333 Or App 196 (2024), claimant sought judicial review of the Board’s denial of penalty and attorney fees under ORS 656.262(11)(a)…
Oregon: Processing Proposed Surgical Authorization Requests Is Not Solely Based on Accepted Conditions
In 2019, the Oregon Supreme Court held that medical services materially related to the work injury are compensable under ORS 656.245 and are not limited…
OREGON: When post-denial IME reports are submitted as evidence at hearing to bolster denial, Court of Appeals declares denial is based on the post-denial IME report.
On April 17, 2024, the Oregon Court of Appeals issued a ruling in Teitelman v. SAIF that a Worker Requested Medical Examination (WRME) can be…
In Oregon, Delay In Seeking Clarification From Attending Physician Regarding an IME, PCE, and Regular Work Release Can Result in Unreasonable Refusal to Close.
The Oregon Workers’ Compensation Board is holding carriers to a high standard when it comes to securing the evidence needed to rate impairment and work…
Surgery in Oregon? Here’s What to Know
The Oregon Workers’ Compensation Division recently added some new deadlines to be aware of when dealing with surgery requests in the MCO context. You can…
