Arnold Releases His Work Comp Reform Blueprint
By Robert Warne - October 20, 2003 Governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger has publicly opened his playbook for accomplishing what he calls real workers’ compensation reform that will comprehensively address all significant drivers behind the current runaway system.
The new governor is eager to move on reforming the single largest cost problem in the system, permanent partial disability, which wasn’t addressed in recent legislation.
To bring the cost of California’s claims inline with the national average Schwarzenegger has produced a five-step agenda.
First, he wants to gain control over abusive claims. Schwarzenegger believes that this can be achieved by implementing objective and enforceable medical utilization guidelines based on best medical evidence. This would put a stop to widely diverging medical care recommendations for similar diagnoses, and keep doctors from controlling the checkbook that pays for their own services.
He also wants to reduce excessive disability costs associated with inconsistent outcomes and litigation by ensuring disability ratings are based on uniform standards of medical evidence. He suggests using the American Medical Association guidelines for rating disabilities.
Schwarzenegger also wants to do more to eliminate unnecessary costs of litigation, fraud and abuse. He said the current dispute resolution procedure is a trial lawyer’s dream because it relies on vague guidelines and fuzzy language.
He also plans to reevaluate State Fund before proposing a detailed resolution to remedy the problems associated with the carrier under-pricing its business and driving other carriers out of the state.
Finally, the new governor wants to address other cost factors such as medical fee schedules, vocational rehabilitation expenditures and potential cost increases arising from the recent legislation within his first 100 days in office.
Schwarzenegger believes that if something isn’t done, the current system will only continue to benefit unscrupulous medical providers, lawyers and un-entitled claimants who have learned to game the system at the expense of California's employees and employers.
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