Workers' Compensation (C) Task Force
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Joint Executive (EX) / Plenary Committee Summary Report
Fall 2009 Meeting Summaries Index

The Workers Compensation (C) Task Force met Sept. 22, 2009.

During the meeting, the Task Force:

• Received an update from NAIC staff on the proposed federal bill, H.R. 635, to establish a National Commission on State Workers’ Compensation Laws. H.R. 635 was introduced Jan. 22 by Rep. Joe Baca (D-CA). A similar bill became law in 1972 and led to a comprehensive study evaluating state workers’ compensation laws. It was reported that a number of stakeholders are opposing the bill, including the American Insurance Association, the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents, the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

• Received a presentation from the U.S. Department of Labor regarding the authorization and method of insuring the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act and its extensions. The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act is a federal statutory workers’ compensation law that covers certain maritime workers, including most dock workers and maritime workers not otherwise covered by the Jones Act. In addition, Congress extended the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act to cover non-appropriated fund employees (i.e., Army Air Force Exchange Service employees), outer-continental-shelf workers, and U.S. government contractors working in foreign countries. The U.S. Department of Labor currently authorizes 358 carriers to write Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation coverage and its extensions.

• Received a second exposure draft titled “Implementation Commentary” prepared by the PEO Guidelines Implementation Paper Drafting Group of the Professional Employer Organization Model Law Working Group. The draft paper was developed to be of assistance to states in implementing the Guidelines for Regulations and Legislation on Workers’ Compensation Coverage for Professional Employer Organization Arrangements (NAIC PEO Guidelines). The paper is considered important due to the complexity of the NAIC PEO Guidelines, adopted in 2007, and due to the number of challenges regulators face today pertaining to PEO matters. The draft is to be revised for consideration of adoption by the Working Group prior to the Winter National Meeting.

• Received the Sept. 21 exposure draft from the National Conference of Insurance Legislators (NCOIL) titled “Proposed Construction Industry Workers’ Compensation Coverage Act.” An NCOIL bulletin dated March 9 stated that NCOIL’s decision to draft the independent contractor model law responded in large part to an NAIC/IAIABC Joint Working Group review of workers’ compensation independent contractor issues that recommended clearer legal standards regarding independent contractor status. Regulator comments regarding the NCOIL draft are being submitted through the recently formed NCOIL Independent Contractor Model Law Subgroup of the NAIC/IAIABC Joint Working Group. NCOIL is expected to consider for adoption a final independent contractor model law draft during its Annual Meeting to be held in November. 

• Learned that the Large Deductible Study Implementation Working Group had presented its latest draft Third Party Administrator (TPA) Guidelines to the Regulatory Framework (B) Task Force for review of health insurance changes from that of the current TPA Statute (TPA Model Law). The draft TPA Guidelines are being developed by the Working Group to eventually replace the current TPA Model Law in order to add workers’ compensation and to update the original model law, which would entail some changes pertaining to health insurance. Once the health changes have been made to the draft, it will be forwarded for final review to the Producer Licensing (EX) Task Force before being considered for adoption by the Working Group.  

• Received a presentation titled “Bringing Workers’ Compensation Benefits Into the 21st Century,” provided by Annmarie Lipold (Lipold Communications, LLC). Ms. Lipold emphasized the need to reconsider what is best for injured workers and their employers, noting that the business environment has changed significantly since Wisconsin enacted the first workers’ compensation statute in 1911. It only makes sense, she said, to take stock of what we have learned and build a better workers’ compensation system for the next 100 years.