Florida's workers compensation insurance may be seeing rate increases in the double digits by August due to the fallout of a recent Florida Supreme Court decision. ​ The National Council on Compensation Insurance Inc., which files rates on behalf of Florida's workers comp insurers and other stakeholders, proposed a 15% rate increase Friday in response to a recent Florida Supreme Court decision deeming it unconstitutional to cap claimant attorney fees. The increase accounts for the potential impact the court ruling could have. Click here to read more:

Oklahoma's Employee Injury Benefit Act, which allows employers to opt out of the state's workers compensation system if they provide alternative benefits for injured employees, is unconstitutional, Oklahoma Workers' Compensation Commission has unanimously ruled. The commission on Friday ruled that provisions of the Oklahoma Employee lnjury Benefit Act are “inoperable,” unconstitutionally depriving injured workers of equal protection and access to the court. Click here to read more:

The owner of a Florida staffing firm has been arrested for allegedly stealing more than $1 million from clients who thought he was providing workers compensation and payroll services, the state's Department of Financial Services said. ​ Ivan Hernandez, the owner of Professional Staffing and Payroll Services, formerly Global Staffing Services L.L.C., in Ft. Myers, Florida, was arrested earlier this month and transported to Lee County Jail for alleged fraudulent conduct, the department said in a Friday statement Click here to read more:

The highest fines employers can face for workplace safety violations will increase by 78%, which will help deter some employers from violating health and safety rules but will not have much impact on the largest employers, according to the head of the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. ​ The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, signed by President Barack Obama in November 2015, required all federal agencies with civil monetary penalties covered by the statute, such as OSHA, to update their fines and adjust them going forward to keep up with inflation. Click here to read more:

The National Council on Compensation Insurance Inc. has proposed a nearly 20% workers compensation rate increase in Florida to cover the projected impact of recent state Supreme Court rulings and a new health care provider reimbursement manual, the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation said. ​ Employers have been bracing for skyrocketing workers comp rates since the Florida Supreme Court issued decisions in Marvin Castellanos v. Next Door Co. et al. and Bradley Westphal v. City of St. Petersburg et al., which deemed the state's attorney fee schedule and temporary total disability provision unconstitutional, respectively. Click here to read more:

The National Council on Compensation Insurance Inc. estimates that an increase in unfunded liabilities for FLorida workers' compensation is expected to exceed $1 billion, resulting from three state Supreme Court rulings. ​ Insurance companies, individual self-insured employers, and employers with deductible policies are expected to saddle the $1 billion debt. ​ That increase is in addition to the almost 20% rate increase proposed earlier this year, an NCCI news release said. Click here to read more:

A long-standing principle governing workers compensation cases provides access to an attorney who will help the injured worker litigate the case efficiently and capably. To give attorneys incentive to take on such cases and to ease the burden on an injured worker to find a capable attorney, attorneys receive their fees from the worker's damage award. Jim Woods and Jeyshree Ramachandran of Mayer Brown L.L.P. discuss states' attorney fee schedules and their effect on these comp cases. Click here to read more:

The White House has signed off on a controversial new regulatory rule that proposed to expand electronic recordkeeping requirements for workplace injuries and illnesses and make such records publicly available. The Office of Management and Budget's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs completed its review on Friday after receiving the proposed rule from the U.S. Department of Labor on Oct. 5, 2015. The final rule has not yet been published, but the department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has gotten authority from the office to publish the rule with unknown changes. Click here to read more:

The U.S. Supreme Court has been asked to review a challenge of the constitutionality of Florida's workers compensation system in a case on which the state Supreme Court declined to rule. ​ Miami attorney Mark Zientz petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court seeking a writ of certiorari in Daniel Stahl v. Hialeah Hospital. The case questions whether Florida's workers comp system is an adequate exclusive remedy for injured workers following changes that eliminated permanent partial disability benefits. Click here to read more:

The Miami Beach police union is appealing to lawmakers to provide workers compensation for police officers who contract the Zika virus after two officers reportedly were denied benefits for the mosquito-borne illness. ​ A report from the Miami New Times newspaper on Tuesday said two Miami Beach police officers were denied workers comp for hospital bills related to Zika. Click here to read more:

A limit on workers compensation benefits for undocumented workers is unconstitutional because it prevents them from being eligible for the same comp benefits afforded to legally employed workers in the state, the Tennessee Supreme Court says. ​ Carlos Martinez emigrated to the United States from Guatemala in 2003 or 2004. In March 2011, he began working for Steve Lawhon, doing business as Commercial Services, a building and ground maintenance company, according to court records. Click here to read more:

A controversial 14.5% workers compensation advisory rate increase apparently will go into effect for Florida on Thursday after the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation filed a notice of appeal late Monday. ​ A Florida Circuit Court judge ruled on Nov. 23 to void the rate increase proposed and approved by the Boca Raton, Florida-based National Council on Compensation Insurance Inc. and the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. The decision is being appealed to the First District Court of Appeal for the State of Florida in Tallahassee, according to the notice of appeal. Click here to read more: