Workers' Compensation in Oklahoma

In 1915 the Workers Compensation act was enacted by the 1st Session of the 36th Oklahoma Legislature. Prior to that time employers feared that their businesses would be ruined if an injured worker sued to recover damages for injuries sustained on the job. The injured workers feared that they would lose their jobs should they seek to recover damages for their injuries. It was hoped that the new workers' compensation legislation would cure the defects of common law and employers' liability statutes. It was hoped that it would be simple and common sense in its provisions, devoid of legalisms. The relief would be certain and immediate. It was hoped that injury schedules would make payments largely automatic so that there would be few occasions when adversary proceedings would be required. Unfortunately, almost a century later, the hopes of those who sought to bring simplicity to this matter, have never materialized. The system has grown more and more complex. Employers are seeing their costs continue to rise while injured workers find a system that is so confusing that they are driven to find legal remedies and representation through an expensive court system.

Health Care Costs

Medical fee schedules should allow discounts. Tort Reform is critical to meaningful Workers' Compensation reform. The discount for medical deductibles is too small. Certified Workplace Management Plans (CWMP) should be utilized by insurance carriers, and judges should be required to observe the CWMP statutes now on the book in deciding cases. Post testing treatment standards need to be established for sprains and strains. Due to the addictive nature of the painkiller, Oxycontin, and other narcotic painkillers, the initial prescription shall be limited to no more than a 10-day supply.

Indemnity Costs

The first, and most obvious, change is to move from a court system to an administrative system as has successfully been accomplished by 47 other states. Attorney should only be paid for the "value added" to a claim. "Injury" should be renamed and redefined as "compensable injury" and should provide that medical evidence must exist before a claim is considered to be compensable. Workers Compensation Court must be required to follow CWMP statues in its decision-making. Proportionality standards need to be developed for cumulative injuries similar to the current Oklahoma unemployment laws. The time limit for filing post-termination injury claims should be reduced to 30-days. Form 2 filings should be exempt from public records laws so information is not readily available for attorney solicitation at the time of filing. Workers' Compensation fraud penalties for all parties need to be increased, Workers' Compensation should be the sole remedy to the injured worker and family.

Summary

Our goal should be to redesign the current system so that injured workers are being compensated and cared for in a fair and reasonable manner while employers are charged a reasonable premium to pay the cost of delivering such care in a less adversarial manner.