Tuesday, July 27, 2004 · Last updated 2:05 a.m. PT
New law delays workers' comp for many
By STEVE LAWRENCE
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Jesse Ceniceros was at the top of his profession as a mechanic for Lockheed Martin when he was injured on the job and fell into California's workers' compensation maze.Now out of work and hobbled by pain, he may lose tens of thousands of dollars in benefits because of the sweeping changes in the system that were pushed through the Legislature earlier this year by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The new law, part of a two-year effort by lawmakers to rein-in skyrocketing workers' comp insurance rates, also has delayed or reopened many workers' cases, in large part because of new treatment guidelines that have brought a flood of rejection notices from insurers, critics say.
"Every day we're getting 15 of these rejections or more," says Helen Seagull, a paralegal at a law office in Pomona. "The client calls me and asks me what can I do? Nothing. We can't do a thing."
Among other things, the new law requires physicians to determine the percentage of a worker's permanent disability that is caused by work and the percentage that can be attributed to other factors such as arthritis, osteoporosis and body weight.
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http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apus_story.asp?category=1110&slug=Workers'%20Compensation