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... with drugs and alcohol. Employers who hire recovering substance abusers receive tax incentives from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the federal government-and they get an opportunity to provide a second chance to someone who is willing to work. Montgomery knew that Beal offered potential employees a place to work, but more importantly, he knew Beal cared about people. Beal's caring approach is illustrated in the example of a former worker who had been with Rizzo's for 18 years before leaving for another job. When the worker, who had come to hold a principal position at Rizzo's, lost his new position, Beal soon suspected that an alcohol problem was the culprit. He took his former worker and friend to get counseling and eventually offered him a full-time job with a full benefits package if he would agree to enroll in a rehabilitation program at Miremount Center. The center provides an important link between Beal and employees undergoing rehabilitation for substance abuse problems. Not only did Beal offer the worker a full-time job, he also provided help to his family during this period. His intervention paid off. After only 28 days, the employee was back at work and has recovered his self esteem, his family and his future. Beal has proved the merit of what PECORA seeks to accomplish in the caring attitude he fosters in his own workplace. He currently has eight employees recovering from substance abuse problems working for him, one-half of whom hold key management positions in his company. People ask me why I hire known substance abusers, ' observes Beal, and my response is, Well, at least I know what I'm getting. When ...

... period is sick from the same illness six days one month, ten days the next month, and so on. If the client doesn't accumulate 90 days of disability within six months, the waiting period starts over. A 12-month period is clearly preferable for this client. Exclusions: Disability policies generally contain exclusions, although some policies only exclude war or an act of war. Among the other possible exclusions: self-inflicted injury, committing or attempting to commit a felony, normal pregnancy, drug abuse, and alcoholism. Premium waivers: The waiver of premium generally takes effect after 90 days, or the elimination period. This waiver will reimburse the premiums paid during that period. In addition, some insurance companies will continue to pay the agent renewal commissions while the client is collecting for the claim. Rehabilitation: A rehabilitation benefit allows the client a set amount toward an occupational rehabilitation program, along with the regular monthly benefits. The treatment of injuries feature allows the policyholder 25% to 50% of the monthly benefit for a nondisabling accidental injury. It can be used per occurrence, and it doesn't coordinate with current medical coverage. In addition, there's no cap on how many times it can be used. Options Disability policies offer a number of options, allowing the agent to tailor the policy to the client's specific needs. These options include: Residual benefit: Under the residual benefit, the policyholder can receive a portion of the benefits, even while working and under a doctor's care. The client must lose 20% to 25% of income to qualify for a partial benefit, and ...

... accuracy (see applicable state law) . Workers Comp laws in most states provide a statutory penalty of 15% to 25% reduction of attorney's fees for improperly filed petitions. One simple way to reduce claims payouts is to avoid claims that are ineligible for payment. Check each state's Statute of Limitations as applied to: Filing of a claim for benefits. Filing of a Petition. Closure of claims files, on non-litigated claims. You'd be amazed at the number of claims that might be dismissed due to the running of applicable Statutes of Limitations. You'll have bought' another claim if any payments are made to the claimant. REDUCE MEDICAL PAYMENTS Once a claim has been established, payouts might be diminished when the claimant has reached their maximum medical improvement and further treatment would provide no benefit. A rehabilitation nurse or medical management personnel might be of great value. The Workers Comp Board might find, with the submitted evidence, that further treatment is unnecessary. They can use the same meds to determine an agreed on percentage of temporary, permanent, partial, or total disability. Regarding medical bills, most adjusters would, if authorized, have a specialized firm review medical bills and charges. Many managed care firms will do this and determine if charges for treatment are appropriate for the injury. In addition, they'll review the mode of treatment to determine if it's appropriate. BEWARE OF MANAGED CARE On the other hand, avoid requesting case management if unwarranted. The managed care approach, as applied by some states, has ushered in an era of increased payouts based on a mandatory charge on all ...

...f regulatory changes, carrier rehabilitations, and the continued drop in inter...

... . 9. Medical Payments. Medical bills should be paid within 25 days of receipt to avoid duplicate payments, which often occur when bills enter the second billing cycle. Consistent delays also can jeopardize essential good relationships with medical providers. 10. Medical Management. Employers often can influence the choice of physicians, and thereby obtain better control of medical costs. The auditor should look for programs designed to accomplish this and should evaluate their effectiveness. 11. Denials. Premature denials force the claimant to go to an attorney, so careful investigation is needed to determine whether a claim will be denied or accepted. 12. Litigation. Effective workers' compensation programs aim at reducing and controlling the number of litigated cases. To control litigation costs, cases should not be abandoned to defense counsel. 13. Rehabilitation. Practical rehabilitation plans can reduce ultimate claim costs and return the employee to productive work. A light-work program for employees still under medical restrictions sometimes is an effective way to reduce temporary disability benefits. 14. Subrogation. When claims are caused by negligent third parties, subrogation should be investigated and pursued. Substantial portions of all costs of some claims can be recovered from third parties. 15. Reserves. Case reserves should be posted accurately and reviewed at regular intervals until the claim is closed. An experienced claim examiner should set case reserves based on his/her best estimate of the ultimate probable cost of each case. 16. Return to Work. When the treating or examining physician releases an employee to return to modified work, the employer should be contacted and provided with a description of ...

... clear the policyholders surrendered and exchanged a significant number of traditional' policies to Executive Life for most of the 1980s. It wasn't until late 1989 that the financial and popular press began to question the financial shell game that appeared to be behind the spectacular growth of the company. Yet only months before the ultimate demise of the company, policyholders and agents seemed to maintain their belief in Fred Carr. At the company's August 1990 annual meeting, Carr made a brief presentation with convincing arguments as to why the company would remain healthy. There were several questions from the audience — mostly friendly — and the meeting adjourned in less than an hour. Barely seven months later, on April 13, 1991, the California Commissioner of Insurance seized the assets of Executive Life and forced the company into a seven-year rehabilitation that severely reduced benefits for millions of Life and annuity policyholders. Executive Life was the largest insurance company failure in U.S. history. Despite the financial harm to so many policyholders, many people in the Life insurance industry privately cheered the demise of the company that had caused them such distress. But when the New Jersey Commissioner of Insurance seized Mutual Benefit just three months later in July 1991, few were laughing. The collapse of Mutual Benefit, a 146-year Old Line Eastern Mutual, ' was an economic and public relations disaster for the industry. The financial and popular press had focused on the Life insurance industry, and if the Russian coup in August 1991 hadn't deflected the media's attention, more carriers would've probably gone insolvent. Until August of that year, many of us feared for the ...

... had increased. He received an award of $140,000 in compensatory damages and $975,000 in punitive damages. In the St. Mary's Honor Center case, the judge believed that the plaintiff had been discriminated against, but that he had not shown it was because of his race rather than for personal reasons. In Harris v. Hughes Aircraft, on the other hand, the jury decided that the discrimination against the plaintiff was because of his race. The lesson for employers appears to be that reasons given for demoting or firing a minority or other protected employee should be substantial and legitimate, and that great care should be taken not to give an impression of discriminatory motives. Footnotes: 42 U.S.C. 1981 ff. 42 U.S.C. 2000e. 29 U.S.C. 621 ff. Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. 701 ff. 42 U.S.C. 12101 ff. Harris v. Forklift Systems, Inc. (1993) U.S., 126 L.Ed.2d 295, 114 S.Ct. 367. Labor Code 1102.1. Holloway v. Arthur Anderson & Co. (9th Cir. 1977) 566 F.2d 659. Title VII, 704(a ), 42 U.S.C. 2000e-3(a ) . For example, the Unruh Civil Rights Act, Calif. Civil Code 51 ff; the Fair Employment and Housing Act, Calif. Govt. Code 12900 ff. 29 U.S.C. 621 ff. Govt. Code 12920. Jennings v. Marralle (1994) 8 Cal.4th 121, 32 Cal.Rptr.2d 275, held that the FEHA applied to age discrimination for employers of five or ...

... Name] reserves the right to demand a drug or alcohol test of any employee based upon reasonable suspicion. Reasonable suspicion includes, but is not limited to, physical evidence of use, involvement in an accident, or a substantial drop off in work performance. Failure to take a requested test may lead to discipline, including possible termination. The company also cautions against use of prescribed or over-the-counter medication which can affect your work place performance. You may be suspended or discharged if the company concludes that you cannot perform your job properly or safely because of using over-the-counter or prescribed medication. Please inform your supervisor prior to working under the influence of a prescribed or over-the-counter medication which may affect your performance. [Company Name] will make every effort to assist its employees who wish to seek treatment or rehabilitation for drug or alcohol dependency. The company will consider continued employment of such an employee as long as the employee adequately addresses continued concerns regarding safety, health, production, communication or other work related matters. You may also be required to agree to random testing and a one-strike' rule. If you have a drug or alcohol problem, please ask for our help! ©1998 Phin Enterprises. Donald A. Phin, Esq., CPCM. No portion of these materials may be reproduced by any means without the express written permission of the author. Login or Register (for FREE) to gain access to thousands of other great articles. Need more reasons to join? Need insurance for you, your business or your family? Get quality appointments - Save yourself a whole ...

... for direct-mail activity, newsletters, etc., and coordinate newsletter program for use on existing and prospective clients. 11. Determine which niche programs individual producers wish to pursue and work with them and commercial lines manager to prepare individual producer business plans to help producers succeed. 12. Monitor demographic changes in city, state, and region, that would impact marketing efforts. 13. Work closely with commercial CSR as the CSR/producer team coordinator. 14. Participate in seminars and classes. 15. Perform other duties as required and assigned. AUTHORITY: 1. Carrier contact as needed 2. Producer/CSR/prospect contact as needed or required 3. Maintain up-to-date file of company programs, brochures, and facilities for possible use 4. Recommendation of salary increases, promotion, probation, rehabilitation of staff within unit; conduct performance evaluations of staff 5. Approval of seminar and training attendance by staff 6. Approval of requisitions for supplies and equipment within unit 7. Maintenance of prospect files and profiles PERFORMANCE-MEASUREMENT CRITERIA: Criteria to measure my achievement of stated duties should include: 1. Timely completion and submission of required reports to my supervisor 2. Adherence and compliance with stated procedures, service standards, personnel policies, and accounting practices 3. Control of expenses within my area of responsibility so budget 4. Degree and quality of professional development 5. Adherence to standards of performance for sales and service 6. Smooth, efficient, and positive relationship between producers, staff, and companies 7. Results of the sales center's efforts 8. Production of leads and prospects sufficient to produce an ...

... short distance to an EAP. Once they learned how modest the costs were (approximately $900 a year), only two major hurdles remained: confidentiality and EAP coverage for a three-state operation. They found an external EAP firm that could provide services at the three worksites, help the company develop an alcohol and drug policy, and maintain strict confidentiality. Since the traumatic incident, nearly 40% of General Alum's employees have joined the EAP program. Approximately 17% use the program for substance abuse problems such as alcohol and street drugs, prescription drugs, and polydrugs. Regular articles on the EAP in the company's bimonthly newsletters can be partially credited with significantly increasing EAP participation by employee's family members. Also contributing to the high utilization of EAP services is the company's policy of sharing one-half of the rehabilitation costs not covered by employees' insurance. Although preemployment drug screening has at times revealed a failure rate as high as 20%, there has been no for cause testing needed, based upon job performance criteria. The support of top management is essential for maintaining a successful EAP program, and this is clearly evident at General Alum & Chemical Corporation. President and CEO James Poure, who has owned and operated the business for nearly 13 years, recently chaired the Toledo Area Chamber of Commerce and is launching a community-wide effort to promote a drug-free workplace policy. Poure is living proof that one can be a caring employer and a community activist. He was also named Entrepreneur of the Year by consensus among Inc. Magazine, Ernst & Young and Merrill Lynch. Login or Register (for FREE ...