Category Archives: Issue commentary

NH High Court Issues Ruling on Medical Marijuana for Injured Worker—Sort of

Posted on March 12, 2019 by Thomas A. Robinson

Opinion Raises as Many Questions as It Answers Last Thursday (March 7), the Supreme Court of New Hampshire handed down a decision that reversed, in pertinent part, a state Appeals Board decision that had refused to require a workers’ compensation … Continue reading →

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South Carolina: In Dependency Case, Commission May Not Presume “Fornication” Occurred

Posted on December 11, 2018 by Thomas A. Robinson

In an ancient decision (one year older than me), Day v. Day, 216 S.C. 334, 58 S.E.2d 83 (1950), the Supreme Court of South Carolina, reflecting the general moral mindset of the time, held that a woman cannot be considered … Continue reading →

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2018’s Top 10 Workers’ Compensation Cases

Posted on November 29, 2018 by Thomas A. Robinson

In the Foreword of our forthcoming Workers’ Compensation Emerging Issues Analysis, 6th Edition [LexisNexis], due out in a few weeks, I note that in contrast to 2017, this year has been relatively calm for the workers’ compensation world. I caution … Continue reading →

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Recent Kansas AMA Guides Decision: Would the Court Prefer a Fault-Based System?

Posted on August 13, 2018 by Thomas A. Robinson

Jettisoning the Bath Water—Does the Baby Remain? As someone who has, for the past 32 years, earned the bulk of his living reading—I’ll admit, often only skimming—some 2,500 appellate decisions each year in our field of workers’ compensation law, and … Continue reading →

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The Real Reason LeBron is Moving to the Lakers!

Posted on July 3, 2018 by Thomas A. Robinson

There are some who point out that LeBron is getting ready to pay the highest taxes in his life (with a $154 million contract, he can afford it), that he should have gone to one of the Florida or Texas … Continue reading →

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Commentary: How Equitable is Florida’s New PTSD Coverage?

Posted on March 30, 2018 by Thomas A. Robinson

What Does Florida Have Against Teachers and Bartenders? As I posted Monday [click here to view that post], a bill to extend relatively broad PTSD coverage to Florida’s first responders was passed unanimously by both state houses earlier in March. … Continue reading →

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Florida Legislature Approves PTSD Coverage for First Responders

Posted on March 26, 2018 by Thomas A. Robinson

Earlier this month, the Florida Senate and House both unanimously passed Senate Bill 376, so as generally to allow workers’ compensation benefits for first responders who suffer PTSD as a result of their work. The coverage protection, which treats PTSD … Continue reading →

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Is the Wall Strong Enough?

Posted on February 2, 2018 by Thomas A. Robinson

Recent Air Ambulance Decisions Hint that McCarran-Ferguson Insurance Barrier to Federal Involvement in Workers’ Comp May Be Decaying Two recent court decisions, one from Texas [PHI Air Med., LLC v. Tex. Mut. Ins. Co., 2018 Tex. App. LEXIS 849 (3rd … Continue reading →

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New Study Says Employer-Directed Choice of MD May Actually Increase Overall Claim Costs

Posted on January 26, 2018 by Thomas A. Robinson

Employer-Controlled Medical Care Drives Claimants to Attorneys, Erasing Savings in Medical Costs A common mantra from the employer-carrier side of the workers’ compensation world goes something like this, “If you really want to gain control of claim costs, you need … Continue reading →

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Medical Benefits Must be “Reasonable and Necessary”—Not Just Beneficial

Posted on December 1, 2017 by Thomas A. Robinson

Virginia Employer Need Not Provide Specialized “Running Blade” Prosthesis While all but a few American jurisdictions require employers to provide medical benefits that are essentially unlimited in terms of duration and amount [see e.g., Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law (“Larson”) § … Continue reading →

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