The
WCCC was formed in 1994 by trade organizations, self-insurers
and insurers who wanted to have a presence at the innovative and
newly formed 4X4 Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) as they
developed the rules to support the new statute. In 2004,
the WCCC supported legislation to change the board structure to
seven members: three Management, three Labor, and the Executive
Director.
From the start, the WCCC published a newsletter (The WCCC
Alert) which kept its members informed as to the activities
and developments at the Workers’ Compensation Board. That
newsletter continues today with editions coming out approximately
six times a year or when there is news from the WCB that needs
to be spread to those interested parties who are on the mailing
list. The WCCC Alert is also available via email.
For two Legislative Sessions after the Comp Reform which resulted
in a new statute, the Legislature was pretty much silent on legislation
to change the statute again. They gave the statute a little bit
of time to mature. However, in 1996, over 30 bills were introduced
which would have brought serious erosion to the reforms. The WCCC
expanded its activities to the State House side of the river.
The WCCC was behind a Grass Roots effort which brought many employers
to the State House to let their Legislators hear just how they
felt about changes to the statute.
As
the 1993 statute has matured, we have discovered that, for the
most part, it is a very balanced and fair statute. However there
are some areas that are not working well for employers or employees
and that need to be adjusted.
Since
1998, numerous bills have been heard that would chip away at the
statute. In 2004, the legislature
restructured the Workers' Comp Board from 4 Management and 4 Labor
members to 3 Management and 3 Labor with the Executive Director
as a member of the board. The new board structure may have
put an end to deadlock, but it has become more and more clear
that the Executive Director controls the votes as the tie breaker.
Unless the 7 member board votes unanimously, there is liable to
be a 4-3 vote. One side is satisfied, and the other is not. Decisions
do get made, but the tension continues. Section 213 and
Medical Fee Schedules are of great concern.
