• Menu
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Before Header

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
 
Paradigm

Amaxx Workers Comp Blog

Reduce Workers Compensation Costs By 20-50%

Header Right

  • Home
    • Training Center
  • Search
    • Free Resources & Solutions
    • Subscribe to Free Newsletter
    • Create Free Training Center Account
    • Enroll in On-Demand Courses
    • Activate WC Mastery Membership
    • Request Strategic Coaching Session
    • Buy WC Guidebooks
  • Membership
    • Insider (free account)
    • WC Mastery
    • Teams & Managers Mastery
    • Training Partners
  • Products
    • On-Demand Courses
    • Specialty Courses
    • Certifications & Mastery Courses
    • Ultimate Guidebooks
    • Coaching
  • Blog
    • Video Blogs
    • COVID-19 / Coronavirus Pandemic
  • Login

Mobile Menu

  • Home
    • Training Center
  • Search
    • Free Resources & Solutions
    • Subscribe to Free Newsletter
    • Create Free Training Center Account
    • Enroll in On-Demand Courses
    • Activate WC Mastery Membership
    • Request Strategic Coaching Session
    • Buy WC Guidebooks
  • Membership
    • Insider (free account)
    • WC Mastery
    • Teams & Managers Mastery
    • Training Partners
  • Products
    • On-Demand Courses
    • Specialty Courses
    • Certifications & Mastery Courses
    • Ultimate Guidebooks
    • Coaching
  • Blog
    • Video Blogs
    • COVID-19 / Coronavirus Pandemic
  • Login
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
You are here: Home / Federal Workers Compensation / Changes to FECA Reflected at this Year’s Federal Workers’ Compensation Conference

Changes to FECA Reflected at this Year’s Federal Workers’ Compensation Conference

July 23, 2012 By //  by Ralph Slighter Leave a Comment

 


 
Senate & House Pass Legislation For First Changes in Almost 40 Years
 
Unlike the laws for state workers’ compensation programs, which have changed, often significantly, over the past several years, the law governing workers’ compensation for civilian Federal employees – including the U.S. Postal Service – has not seen substantial change in almost 40 years. Amid signs that this status quo may be changing – both the Senate and the House have passed separate legislation in this Congress that would amend the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA).
 
Tighter Budgets Require Changes
 
In 2012, FECA benefits paid to injured employees, their surviving dependents, and their medical providers topped $3 billion for the first time. Those costs are billed to Federal agencies by the U.S. Department of Labor, and Federal agencies must include these bills in their annual appropriation. In an era of tighter budgets, personnel looking for ways to manage those costs will be attending Conference sessions at the 14th Annual Federal Workers’ Compensation Conference that address topics such as: challenging questionable claims, managing complex cases, and offering suitable light or limited duty positions. Speakers at this Conference, who include officials from the Department of Labor and various Federal agencies, as well as physicians and managed care specialists, are subject matter experts on different aspects of case management. In all, 47 separate courses on Federal workers’ compensation management, plus another 19 on Federal occupational safety and health, will be held at this Conference. 
 
Underlying the Conference is speculation that FECA may be amended. The House passed legislation (H.R. 2465) in November of 2011 that would make minor changes in FECA, but the Senate passed legislation in April of 2012 (S. 1789) that would, as part of Postal Service reform, make some significant changes in the benefit rates paid under FECA, including lower rates for retirement-age workers and government-wide application of a 3-day waiting period that currently only applies to Postal Service employees. The fact that the 2012 elections are less than 4 months away leads some to believe that the chances for passage are slim, yet it is remembered that the last major changes in FECA were enacted in September of 1974 – two months before Congressional elections. It is also clear, given such evidence as a Presidential memorandum on Federal injury compensation in July of 2010, the Congressional legislation noted above, and increased attention by the Government Accountability Office which has issued two reports on FECA in the past year, that renewed attention is being focused on this program. Even if no legislation is enacted, however, the FECA program is rapidly evolving; within the past year alone, new regulations became effective, automated document submission began for both employees and employers, and additional fee schedules for medical services were put in place.   The Atlanta Conference will include sessions on several of these recent changes.
 
Atlanta Conference to Include Sessions on Changes
 
The 14th Annual Federal Workers’ Compensation Conference will take place from July 24 – July 27 in Atlanta, GA. For more information please visit http://www.wcconf.org/
 
 
Author Ralph G. Slighter is the Deputy Division Chief of the Injury Compensation and Unemployment Compensation Division (ICUC) for the Department of Defense. He will present at a variety of sessions at the Federal Workers’ Compensation Conference including, “Trends in Society and the Future of Federal Employees Compensation.” For more information on the sessions that Ralph Slighter will be teaching please refer to the conference schedule http://www.wcconf.org/sites/default/files/pdf/program.pdf .

Filed Under: Federal Workers Compensation Tagged With: FECA

Related Articles

Understanding Federal Workers’ Compensation Claims

Understanding Federal Workers’ Compensation Claims

D-Day and Workers Compensation Claims

D-Day and Workers Compensation Claims

Know Your Federal Acts in Workers Compensation: ADA, ERISA, FMLA

Know Your Federal Acts in Workers Compensation: ADA, ERISA, FMLA

Maritime Workers, The Jones Act, And Workers Compensation Explained

Maritime Workers, The Jones Act, And Workers Compensation Explained

Why Workers Comp Laws Are State, Not Federal

Why Workers Comp Laws Are State, Not Federal

The Best Tidbits of News from the Workers Comp World

The Best Tidbits of News from the Workers Comp World

$39 Million in Illness Compensation Further Clarified

$39 Million in Illness Compensation Further Clarified

Chemical Safety Board Develops New Employee Participation Investigation Policy

Chemical Safety Board Develops New Employee Participation Investigation Policy

MSHA Unveils Numbers from Mine Safety Sweeps

MSHA Unveils Numbers from Mine Safety Sweeps

Workers Compensation News in Brief for February 2012

Workers Compensation News in Brief for February 2012

Amaxx Details 2012 Workers Compensation Management Program Updates

Amaxx Details 2012 Workers Compensation Management Program Updates

California Postal Window Clerk Delivered Some Bad News

California Postal Window Clerk Delivered Some Bad News

Free Download

5-Step Sequence to Coordinate Return-to-Work with ADA Compliance - FREE Download Click Here Now!

Train to Succeed

BECOME CERTIFIED IN WORKERS’ COMPENSATION

Proven Course Catalog & WC Toolbox Give You The Power To Achieve Lower Costs and Better Injured Worker Outcomes

VISIT WORKERS' COMP TRAINING CENTER

Previous Post: « To Replace or Not Replace that Shoulder
Next Post: WorkSafe Begins Phase 2 of Workplace Safety Program »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

FREE DOWNLOAD

5-Step Sequence to Coordinate Return-to-Work with ADA Compliance - FREE Download Click Here Now!

Our Sponsors

ARCADIA - Enhancing Settlement Outcomes

The Structured Settlements Company
 

Catastrophic and Risk Solutions, Case Management Solutions, and Specialty Networks
 

Post-Settlement Administration
 

Medcor

Injury Triage, Onsite Clinics

Read Our Award-Winning Blog

Blog Categories

Search Our Archive

Subscribe to Our FREE Newsletter

Return-to-Work Essentials

Footer

Search Our Archive

Search our continually growing archive of over 2500 articles about Workers' Comp issues.

Quiclinks

  • Calculators
  • Terms & Abbreviations
  • Glossary of WC Premium Terms
  • WC Resources
  • Best Practices
  • Industries
  • Return-to-Work Essentials

RSS Recent Blog Posts

  • Five Things to Include in Your Workers’ Comp Communication Policy
  • An Advocacy Approach in Claims Handling
  • Appreciation in Workers’ Compensation
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FEE NEWSLETTER
Let Us Help You Stomp Down the High Cost of Workers' Comp!
Top of Page ↑
  • Home
  • Training Center
  • Search
  • Membership
  • Products
  • Blog
  • About
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Login
Copyright © 2022 Amaxx, LLC. All Rights Reserved. · Privacy Policy / Legal Notice