I think it should go. It is nothing but a liberal agency for the fradulant claimant. All they do is award benefits, no matter what. I vote abolish that liberal agency. Thier the ones killing the WC system in Texas.
My concern is why the TWCC has 1,000 employees handling 200,000 claims; this is the equivalent of 200 claims being handled per employee. As a licensed adjuster, I have handled well over 1,500 claims in any given year. What’s wrong with this picture?
Wade Austin,
Perhaps you might consider conducting just a little personal research for determing where the real and actual Fraud exist.
Progressively, during the last 8 to 10 years the Austin Commission, with dominance, has been controlled by carriers. Each year we said it could not become worse, but it did.
Carriers’ Greed for more profit has caused their financial Titanic for sinking. Unfortunately, that Titanic should have sunk 10-years ago.
If the carriers are so greedy, was is it that medical costs outstrip the national average and benefits to claimants keep increasing, yet the loss ratio is still over 100?
TDI sets benchmark rates, not TWCC, so the premium issues are not under TWCC control. TWCC sets the medical reimbursements and indeminity rates, without regard to to costs to employees, employers, or carriers.
I, strangely, agree with the chairman, the system is broken.
It is up to the bi-annual circus which meets in Austin in the odd number years (the State Legisature) to fix this problem. And, as the citizens of this great state know, they are great for pointing fingers and passing the buck. Real leadership from them, the Govenor, and the Insurance Commissioner. Real leadership indeed.
Workers’ Compensation was established in 1913 for the benefit of the injured worker as a legislative compromise that ensured reduced but certain benefits. The Act was slightly modified in 1917 then remained the same until a “crisis” was declared in the late 1980’s and the legislature through the baby out with the bathwater. The problem with health care delivery is due to overly complex and expensive due process for obtaining the “lifetime” medical benefits which were promised then effectively removed by amendment in subsequent years for political and not efficiency reasons. A majority of Texas Doctors have chosen to not take worker’s compensation patients because it is now too difficult to obtain payment after services are rendered. Just as a majority of attorneys stopped accepting clients after 1991 when the “New Comp” went into effect.
There was only one carrier created under the “New Law” but it didn’t take long for the rest to see that the time was ripe to make some money in Texas. The problem is, the infuence and greed, again, has upset the system and, again, led to rearranging the chairs on the Titanic.
This is not a liberal or conservative debate. The problem is in striking a balance and determining who and why a special interest group wants an advantage rather than an opportunity. A carrier deserves an opportunity to make an honest buck for honest service; a doctor deserves to make an honest buck for his or her time and expertise; likewise for an attorney who represents an injured worker against those who would take advantage of his or her situation or simply discard that individual as if they were disposable.
Employers need affordable insurance. Employees need coverage and reasonably certain (not illusive as the present state of affairs) benefits. And Carriers cannot be expected to opperate without a profit–who would?
I tried to help injured worker’s before the Commission for 7 years. I stopped taking clients 3 years ago because I couldn’t justify the time and expense any longer.
The “problem” has never been the administrative personell at the Commission as a matter of fact they’re the most adaptive state worker’s you’ll ever meet–out of necessity, I suppose.
The problem is that the equation is out of balance…
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I think it should go. It is nothing but a liberal agency for the fradulant claimant. All they do is award benefits, no matter what. I vote abolish that liberal agency. Thier the ones killing the WC system in Texas.
My concern is why the TWCC has 1,000 employees handling 200,000 claims; this is the equivalent of 200 claims being handled per employee. As a licensed adjuster, I have handled well over 1,500 claims in any given year. What’s wrong with this picture?
Wade Austin,
Perhaps you might consider conducting just a little personal research for determing where the real and actual Fraud exist.
Progressively, during the last 8 to 10 years the Austin Commission, with dominance, has been controlled by carriers. Each year we said it could not become worse, but it did.
Carriers’ Greed for more profit has caused their financial Titanic for sinking. Unfortunately, that Titanic should have sunk 10-years ago.
If the carriers are so greedy, was is it that medical costs outstrip the national average and benefits to claimants keep increasing, yet the loss ratio is still over 100?
TDI sets benchmark rates, not TWCC, so the premium issues are not under TWCC control. TWCC sets the medical reimbursements and indeminity rates, without regard to to costs to employees, employers, or carriers.
I, strangely, agree with the chairman, the system is broken.
It is up to the bi-annual circus which meets in Austin in the odd number years (the State Legisature) to fix this problem. And, as the citizens of this great state know, they are great for pointing fingers and passing the buck. Real leadership from them, the Govenor, and the Insurance Commissioner. Real leadership indeed.
Workers’ Compensation was established in 1913 for the benefit of the injured worker as a legislative compromise that ensured reduced but certain benefits. The Act was slightly modified in 1917 then remained the same until a “crisis” was declared in the late 1980’s and the legislature through the baby out with the bathwater. The problem with health care delivery is due to overly complex and expensive due process for obtaining the “lifetime” medical benefits which were promised then effectively removed by amendment in subsequent years for political and not efficiency reasons. A majority of Texas Doctors have chosen to not take worker’s compensation patients because it is now too difficult to obtain payment after services are rendered. Just as a majority of attorneys stopped accepting clients after 1991 when the “New Comp” went into effect.
There was only one carrier created under the “New Law” but it didn’t take long for the rest to see that the time was ripe to make some money in Texas. The problem is, the infuence and greed, again, has upset the system and, again, led to rearranging the chairs on the Titanic.
This is not a liberal or conservative debate. The problem is in striking a balance and determining who and why a special interest group wants an advantage rather than an opportunity. A carrier deserves an opportunity to make an honest buck for honest service; a doctor deserves to make an honest buck for his or her time and expertise; likewise for an attorney who represents an injured worker against those who would take advantage of his or her situation or simply discard that individual as if they were disposable.
Employers need affordable insurance. Employees need coverage and reasonably certain (not illusive as the present state of affairs) benefits. And Carriers cannot be expected to opperate without a profit–who would?
I tried to help injured worker’s before the Commission for 7 years. I stopped taking clients 3 years ago because I couldn’t justify the time and expense any longer.
The “problem” has never been the administrative personell at the Commission as a matter of fact they’re the most adaptive state worker’s you’ll ever meet–out of necessity, I suppose.
The problem is that the equation is out of balance…
If you know how they are voting on TABC i would like to know please keep me informed.