Legislature(2005 - 2006)BELTZ 211
03/17/2005 01:30 PM Senate LABOR & COMMERCE
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB102 | |
| SB124 | |
| SB131 | |
| SB138 | |
| SB130 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | SB 131 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SB 138 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 124 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 102 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 130 | TELECONFERENCED | |
SB 130-WORKERS' COMPENSATION
CHAIR CON BUNDE announced SB 130 to be up for consideration.
MIKE JENSON, attorney, said he exclusively represents injured
workers with workers' compensation cases. He said his colleagues
had faxed the committee with their concerns today.
MR. JENSON said he has heard a lot of testimony about premium
increases, but he hasn't ever heard an explanation that accounts
for the increases.
When you look at the annual reports that the
commissioner and the Governor are relying upon, they
show, in fact, that time-loss claims have decreased.
Injuries have decreased over 5 percent in the last
annual report. Employee legal expenses have decreased
over 10 percent. Incidentally, we've enjoyed the
greatest decrease in expense for the workers' comp
system.
Our colleagues on the insurance side, on the other
hand, have seen an increase in legal expenses and, in
fact, received approximately three times as much in
legal expense reimbursements as employees do. In
addition, the annual report shows reemployment
benefits have decreased medical costs. They have shown
an increase, but that's only 8 percent and total
benefits are only up 7 percent. So, it's difficult for
me as a lay person to understand why employers are
facing up to 400 percent premium increases when the
total benefits have only gone up 7 percent. I have not
heard any discussion or explanation from the
Governor's office, the commissioner or the director,
which addresses that concern.
In addition to representing injured workers, I'm also
an employer and I also have to face increased
premiums, but as an employer, I would like to know
that if we are to reform the compensation system, that
my premiums are, in fact, reduced. If total benefits
are only up 7 percent, it's difficult for me to
comprehend how reforming a workers' compensation
system will address the problems that other employers
are facing with as much as 400 percent increases.
He wanted to address the creation of a commission in section 10
that creates a court without calling it a court and creates
judges without calling them judges.
Judges will be mere political appointees, not subject
to the standards of judicial conduct. Preemption would
not be allowed; the commission would not be subject to
the present standards of judicial review. It will
decide cases de novo and the judges will never be
evaluated for their ability or fairness.
Section 29, which is part of this creation of the
commission, takes away current power of the board to
determine the credibility of medical reports. A board
finding concerning the weight to be accorded witness
testimony including medical testimony will no longer
be conclusive. The board's determination of
credibility will be exclusively limited to testimony
presented by a witness at a hearing. This will
increase, not decrease, the cost of litigation to
employers and employees alike, since medical reports
will no longer have the weight currently accorded by
the present act. The board will lose, in fact, its
power to determine credibility of medical reports or
other evidence not presented by a witness at hearing.
In addition, it makes clear the commission, since it
will review de novo all prior board decisions, it
makes clear that instead of resolving a case with one
hearing, now all cases will require two hearings. How
this will decrease litigation costs that employers are
facing is difficult for me to comprehend. It permits
parties to present new or additional evidence at this
second hearing. It permits an easier granting of stays
without requiring any bonds - increasing the
likelihood of having two hearings.
It makes certain that all adverse board decisions will
be appealed by the party who lost at the board level.
All of this will greatly increase litigation costs.
Every party who loses at the board will be compelled
to appeal for a chance at two bites of the apple. Me,
as an employer, would be certainly troubled by hearing
a case that went to a hearing in which I prevailed. I
would only have to face another hearing where I would
have to defend, face additional and new evidence. This
does not benefit employers and it certainly doesn't
benefit injured workers. It creates another hurdle
that both employers and employees have to jump
through. It certainly doesn't address, in light of the
annual report statistics, the increased premiums that
employers here in Alaska face.
3:17:06 PM
MARK KLINE, representing himself, said reduced fees in section
25 might reduce the quality of health care already available
through existing law. Studies done during the Clinton
administration found that regulation of health care to control
costs decreased the quality of it. He also thought the majority
of cost problems employers are having is because of the lack of
appropriate pursuit of safety that in turn causes a significant
quantity of injuries and illnesses. The national estimate rate
is five injuries per hundred employees, but Alaska's is seven
injuries per hundred employees. That makes it 40 percent higher
than the national average according to the Bureau of Labor
statistics.
This higher incidence could likely cause increased prices in
insurance premiums. He favored increased involvement by OSHA,
employers and employees who should have meetings pertaining to
safety issues. This would keep injuries and insurance premiums
down.
3:21:10 PM
Section 16 reduces the amount of permanent impairment capital an
employee is entitled to, which might encourage employers who
have little or no interest in safety to reduce their efforts
even further in preservation of the working environment. They
could afford to take more chances because of a lesser amount of
penalty they would be subjected to.
CHAIR BUNDE thanked him for his testimony.
3:21:53 PM
LANCE BUSH said he works at Fred Meyer in Anchorage and agreed
with Mr. Kline. A garage door came down and hit him on the
shoulder and broke his foot in six places. His wife, six
children and he are going through a living hell. Loopholes in
the law are being used against him. He thinks the Legislature is
increasing corporate protection in Alaska. He sees Alaskans with
injuries that require minimal medical attention and said:
But seriously injured Alaskans are swept under
corporate America's rug, left to be ignored in
litigation because the liability is too costly and
they don't want to take accountability.... Now I feel
me and my family's American dream is altered and we've
begun to live the workman's comp nightmare. I would
like to know when we are going to hold corporate
Alaska, corporate America, accountable for illegal
practices, bullying, intimidation and outright lies -
to us as truly proven cases of injured Alaskans....
CHAIR BUNDE thanked everyone for their testimony and said the
committee ran out of time and adjourned the meeting at 3:27:24
PM.
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