The New York Worker’s Compensation Board’s quest to retro-activate Medical Treatment guidelines may now need to be rethought. The Workers Compensation Board now is admitting that their ideas may not be valid as nearly a quarter of a million requests have come in during the first year to deviate from the guidelines currently in place.
The Board has rejected about 28% of the requests which total about 50,000 applications. Another 165,000 applications were the subject of almost 20,000 hearings, with 2,000 hearings scheduled each month. It is estimated that the processes and paperwork costs nearly $60 million to employers each year. This amount of cost is much higher than the cost of the treatment being denied to workers injured on the job.
The passage of S3741 would stop the New York Workers Compensation Board from staying with the former treatment guidelines. The new data shows that costs will be reduced for employers and medical treatment would be more available for workers injured on the job. There is hope that the Legislature will pass S3741 to make it beneficial for everyone involved in the worker’s compensation system.