Things you should know

Depression and anxiety continue upward trend among injured workers

An industry trends report released by Medrisk Inc., which manages physical medicine services for injured workers, notes injured workers self-reporting anxiety and depression increased significantly between 2019 and 2020 and did not return to pre-pandemic rates in 2022 as the pandemic waned. Injured employees reporting anxiety and depression have a seven percent higher utilization of physical therapy services than others.

Focus four hazards cause 65 percent of workplace deaths in construction

The Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR) examined construction worker deaths over a recent 11-year period and found that almost two-thirds were related to falls, struck-by, caught-in/between, and electrocution hazards. From 2011 to 2021, approximately 10,700 construction workers died from an on-the-job injury. Falls to a lower level accounted for 35 percent of total fatalities.

New report explains how to use data and AI technology to reduce injuries

The National Safety Council released a new white paper through its Work to Zero initiative, Using Data and AI to Gain Insights into Your Safety Program. The paper addresses using computer vision for risk mitigation, drones for working at height and confined space inspections, the use of proximity sensors for avoiding equipment strikes, and the use of virtual reality and augmented reality to enhance worker safety.

Coal miners have higher death rates from lung disease than their predecessors: study

Researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago and NIOSH recently published the largest existing study on causes of mortality in U.S. coal miners. Findings show not only that coal miners are more likely to die from lung diseases than other workers, but that today's coal miners face greater mortality risk than their predecessors.

Workers in food supply chain industry facing higher injury risks - Study

Researchers from Pennsylvania State University and the University of Florida used 2015-2020 data from OSHA to investigate all severe injuries related to transport packaging and its use in various segments of the food and beverage-related industry. Of the 1,084 severe injuries reported, 272 (25.1 percent) were from employees of grocery and related product merchant wholesalers. Warehousing and storage workers accounted for 191 of the injuries (17.6 percent), followed by grocery store workers, who reported 176 injuries (16.2 percent). Transportation incidents were the top cause of serious injuries.

Women in construction share experience in report

Construction companies looking to recruit and retain women can find helpful information in a new report by the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER). NCCER conducted focus groups with 176 tradeswomen nationwide and analyzed survey responses from 770 women in construction. The report concludes the industry must change its culture and perception to attract and retain women. Barriers include hiring practices, discrimination and sexual harassment, jobsite experience, limited training opportunities, and lack of accommodations for working mothers.

Free, online training course explains Total Worker Health concepts

CPH-NEW, a NIOSH Center of Excellence based out of the University of Massachusetts-Lowell, offers a free online training course designed to introduce Total Worker Health concepts to occupational safety and health professionals.

State News

California

• The Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB) is proposing to increase the threshold used to determine whether employers will be eligible for experience rating to $10,200 from $9,200 to reflect wage inflation and proposed Sept. 1 expected loss rate.
• Part I of a new Workers' Compensation Institute (CWCI) research series on low-volume/high-cost drugs used to treat injured workers spotlights a handful of Anti-Inflammatory and Anticonvulsant medications that account for a relatively small share of the prescriptions within their therapeutic drug groups, but that have become significant cost drivers, representing a disproportionately large share of the payments. These include fenoprofen calcium, biologic etanercept (Enbrel), ketoprofen, lacosamide, levetiracetam, lamotrigine, and pregabalin.

Florida

• A sweeping tort reform bill known as HB 837 was signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis on March 23 and goes into effect immediately. While it was lauded by industry and business groups, plaintiff attorneys filed over 70,000 lawsuits the week before passage, fearing it will jeopardize their clients' outcomes. It removes the attorney-client privilege for medical referrals, disclosure of the referral and evidence of the referral is admissible. In addition, the financial relationship between a law firm and a medical provider, including the number of referrals, frequency, and financial benefit obtained, is relevant to the issue of the bias of a testifying medical provider. It reduces the statute of limitations for negligence actions from four (4) years to two (2) years, eliminates fee multipliers for all lines of insurance, limits recovery if a plaintiff is found to be more than 50 percent at fault, expands immunity from liability for property owners defending against criminal acts on their property, and provides uniform standards for juries in calculating medical damages.

Illinois

• The Supreme Court rules that U.S. labor law bars unionized workers from suing their employers for violations of the state's biometric privacy law. The court said federal labor law preempts that right for unionized workers because their collective bargaining agreements establish procedures for arbitrators to hear legal disputes.

Virginia

• Governor Glenn Youngkin approved H.B. 1410 and S.B. 1038 measures, making arson and bomb investigators with at least five years of experience eligible for a presumption that certain cancers are compensable. In addition to bomb and arson investigators, the bills also apply the cancer presumption to those who collect and analyze hazardous materials or drugs. He also signed H.B. 1408, which expands the cancer presumption to cover bladder and thyroid cancer and H.B. 1775, which requires first responder claims for anxiety and depressive disorders to be covered on the same basis as post-traumatic stress disorder claims. The effective date is July 1, 2023.