Evidentiary Hearing In Criminal Organization Munir Uwaydah Case To Continue On Tuesday, August 14th 2018. Defense Will Most Likely Continue To Grill Sergeant Tim McCrillis On The Witness Stand. By Lonce Lamonte - August 8, 2018 The Evidentiary Hearing for alleged attorney-client privilege violations by the prosecution as set forth in a motion by the defense in the Criminal Organization Munir Uwaydah case in downtown L.A. will continue with proceedings at 10 am on August 14th 2018, next Tuesday.  With a calendar that’s jammed in the court room of Los Angeles Superior Court judge Larry Fidler, of two Phil Spector trials fame from 2007 to 2009, the Evidentiary Hearing will finally happen again after a full month of recess.  The last day of its proceedings was on June 14th 2018. Read More

California Division of Workers’ Compensation Posts Revised July 1, 2018 Adjustments to Official Medical Fee Schedule (Physician Services / Non-Physician Practitioner Services) By Lonce Lamonte and Newsline from the California Department of Industrial Relations - July 31, 2018 On June 26th, the Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) adopted an order adjusting the Official Medical Fee Schedule (OMFS) to conform to changes in the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule payment system’s July 1, 2018 quarterly update.  The June 26th Order included adoption of updates to the National Correct Coding Initiative “Medically Unlikely Edits” (MUE). The MUE edits file sets forth the maximum number of units of service related to a specific procedure that are medically likely to be reported by a treating physician. It serves as a useful screening tool to identify possible billing errors for many procedure codes. However, evaluation of the July 1, 2018 MUE file reveals that many codes are listed as zero value due to Medicare coverage rules that do not apply to the scope of workers’ compensation medical care. For example, acupuncture codes and hearing aid examination codes were added to the file with a value of “zero” because they are not Medicare benefits; however, they are covered services for workers’ compensation patients when medically necessary. Read More

Eleven More Medical Providers Suspended By California Division Of Workers’ Compensation For Fraud Or Loss Of License By Lonce Lamonte and Newsline from the California Department of Industrial Relations - July 27, 2018 DWC Administrative Director George Parisotto issued suspension orders against: James Chen, Palmdale pharmacy owner, who pled guilty in federal court in 2017 to health care fraud for pharmacy processing and billing approximately $62 million in fraudulent prescriptions for compounded medications. The California Department of Health Care Services suspended him from the Medi-Cal program on October 6, 2017.  Read More

Zachary Sacks Named 2018 Southern California Lawyer Of The Year By Best Lawyers® By Lonce Lamonte - July 25, 2018 Zachary H. Sacks, founding partner of the law firm Sacks & Zolonz, was honored this year by being chosen “Southern California’s 2018 Lawyer Of The Year” by Best Lawyers® for employers in workers’ compensation defense.   Zachary was the only defense attorney to attain such recognition. Best Lawyers® is one of the most prestigious rating organizations.  For more than three decades, Best Lawyers’ lists have been compiled by conducting exhaustive peer-review surveys in which tens of thousands of leading lawyers confidentially evaluate their professional peers.  Read More

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July 23, 2018 - Jonathan Hall, LAPD Officer Convicted Of Perjury By A Los Angeles Jury, Tells LA Times He’s Talking About His Workers’ Compensation Fraud Now Because He Has Nothing More To Lose.

July 18, 2018 - California’s Division of Workers’ Compensation Responds to Public Inquiries Regarding Acupuncture and July 1st Physician Fee Schedule Update

July 17, 2018 - California Division of Workers’ Compensation Posts Updated Subpoena Forms on Website

July 13, 2018 - California Division of Workers’ Compensation Announces Formation of Pharmacy and Therapeutics Advisory Committee

July 12, 2018 - Evidentiary Hearing On Attorney-Client Privilege Violation Accusation Against Prosecution In Criminal Organization Munir Uwaydah Case In Downtown LA Now Put Off Calendar. Defense Argues That Sergeant McCrillis Was Egregiously Tainted.

July 10, 2018 - California Division of Workers' Compensation Posts Adjustment to Official Medical Fee Schedule (Pathology and Clinical Laboratory Section)

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