If you are an injured worker (or doctor or employer) unhappy with aspects of California’s workers’ comp system, you have an opportunity to make yourself heard.
You can register to speak at the hearings the DWC is holding around the state in April.
Have you had problems finding treating doctors on medical networks or problems with utilization review? I’d encourage workers who have had problems getting medical treatment to step forward.
Have you had problems navigating the “QME process”? Time to make yourself heard.
Likewise, workers who were rated as having “zero disability” but who have ongoing wage losses are encouraged to step forward. Were you rated with a percentage award that is clearly disproportionate to the impact of injury on your functioning?
You can register to speak (speakers will need to boil down their comments to 3 minute segments) by replying here:
http://www.dir.ca.gov/dwc/dwc_newslines … 12-12.html
If you find the session is full, the link noted above includes a sub-link where you can send your written comments as testimony.
With 2012 workers’ comp reform efforts being discussed among various stakeholders, the upcoming hearings could be the last best chance for workers (or employers or doctors) to directly speak to Brown Administration policymakers.
As the legislative season moves forward, lobbyists and spokespersons for “stakeholder groups” will be trying to influence the process.
But now is a time that individuals can step forward to be heard.
Julius Young
www.boxerlaw.com
Category: Political developments
510.835.8870