Category: Washington Workers’ Compensation
Have you or someone you know been negatively affected by the new Washington IME rules? Get help here!
The new Washington Independent Medical Exam (IME) recording and co-recording rules have made obtaining an IME even more difficult than when they were limited by…
All Washington Self-Insured Employers Should Be Aware of (And Attend if Possible) the Department of Labor & Industries “Listening Sessions” Regarding the Newly Enacted “Bad Faith” Laws
The Washington legislature passed one of two pieces of legislation that creates new duties and standards for some self-insured employers. Substitute House Bill 1521 is…
Limitations for self-insured employers in Washington recouping overpayment benefits
During the administration of a workers’ compensation claim, it is common for the self-insured employer or the Department of Labor and Industries to pay the…
Washington L&I may add nurses to PTSD presumption
On September 7, 2023, the Department of Labor and Industries issues a notice of proposed rulemaking seeking adding a new section to WAC 296-14-300 adding…
What Decision? Washington requirements on Communication and Mailing.
RCW 51.52.060 sets forth the Department’s rules regarding the timeline to appeal a decision. It explains that any party (with the exception of certain enumerated…
New Notice Requirement for Independent Medical Examinations in Washington Effective July 23, 2023.
Substitute House Bill (SHB) 1068 was adopted into law by the legislature effective July 23, 2023. This legislation amends RCW 51.36.070, giving workers the right…
New PTSD Presumption for Registered Nurses in Washington
On May 9, 2023, Governor Jay Inslee signed SB 5454 into law further expanding the number of presumptions under the Washington Industrial Insurance Act. SB…
Washington’s Department of Labor & Industries Announces Changes to Covid-19 Presumption and IME Rules
As the saying goes, change is constant. Never, it seems, has this saying been more applicable to Washington workers’ compensation laws and claims administration. The…
When can a worker reclassify a Washington industrial injury claim to an occupational disease claim?
In Washington, workers’ compensation claims are bifurcated and categorized as an industrial injury or an occupational disease. An “industrial injury” involves a sudden and tangible…
New Washington Board Decision Addresses Closure of Claims When Worker Deceased
The Washington Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals recently designated a new significant decision addressing the situation where a worker dies for unrelated reasons with an…
Washington Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals Makes In Re Michael Reed a Significant Decision
On March 7, 2023, the Washington Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals published its Significant Decisions from 2022. Each year the Board classifies a small number…
Washington Legislature Considers Bills to Drastically Increase Penalties and Impose Standard of Care on Self Insured Employer’s/TPAs
As part of the current session, the Washington State legislature is considering bills in the House and Senate which impose a duty of good faith…
No Doctor, No Problem? Rule 904 & Washington State Claims
There are many reasons, despite the best efforts of adjusters, adjudicators, and attorneys, that a workers compensation claim may take a while to resolve. Long…
When to request a segregation order on a newly contended condition in Washington
The Department of Labor and Industries recently addressed when it believes a request for a segregation order is appropriate on newly contended conditions. A condition…
Is that a protest?
The Washington Industrial Insurance Act allows parties aggrieved by Department orders to request in writing reconsideration, known as a protest, of the order within 60-days…
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…
Washington’s Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals Limits Workers’ Ability to Add Occupational Disease Conditions to Industrial Injury Claims in Tentatively Significant Decision
In some Washington workers’ compensation cases, a significant hurdle can be determining whether a condition in a worker’s claim resulted from an industrial injury or…
Securing Claim Closure in Washington
So you want to close a claim or secure settlement of a claim but the worker isn’t old enough for a claim resolution settlement agreement…
Reassessing an injured worker’s status for permanent total disability following a reopening application in Washington workers’ compensation
An injured worker is permanently and totally disabled within the meaning of the Industrial Insurance Act when, as a result of the industrial injury, he/she…
Proximate Cause – The Often Overlooked Requirement for Claim Reopening in Washington
In order to reopen a workers’ compensation claim in Washington, a worker must establish that an accepted condition has objectively worsened since the date the…
Monkeypox is on the rise in the State of Washington. What does that mean for occupational disease claims?
Is this the beginning of another global health crisis? In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world is facing yet another global health crisis:…
Claimant Died: Now What?
It is commonly said that there are only two constants in life: death and taxes. While Washington workers’ compensation benefits are generally tax free, death…
Washington’s Department of Labor & Industries Issues Q&A for New IME Rules and Guidelines
The Department of Labor & Industries’ new rules and guidelines for independent medical examinations (IME) went into effect on April 23, 2022. These rules and…
Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals Makes In Re Kathleen Houlihan a Significant Decision
On April 29, 2022, the Washington Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals published its new “Significant Decisions” from 2021. The Board issues hundreds of Decisions &…
Washington L&I Conducts Ambient Heat Exposure Rulemaking
The Department is conducting rulemaking to update the requirements for occupational heat exposure from high ambient temperatures in all industries, including outdoor and indoor exposures….
