February 13, 2012

An article by Jacobus Hollewijn of Gesundheit! Nutrition Center and host of the radio talk show Gesundheit! With Jacobus published in Natural Life News following a 3 hour radio show in December 2012 featuring interviews of Gary Lusin, PT (Bozeman, MT), Leah Tietz (Director of Montana University System Self-Funded WC Program) and Michael J. Marsh, RPA (President of Midland Claims Service, Inc. and Industrial Injury Claims)

Click here to read the article (pdf)….

“..workers prescribed even one opioid had average total claims costs 4 to 8 times greater than claimants with similar claims who didn’t get opioids.” This is a telling statistic.  One company is featured on Joe Paduda’s blog that has successfully begun to proactively address misuse of opioids in treatment of workers’ compensation claims, helping many injured workers not become addicted and return to their jobs.  Read more on the topic…

According to an article in Claims Journal – Winter 2012, quoting from a report issued by the National Institutes of Health (“NIH”), “of the 2.1 billion prescriptions the American Medical Association estimates are written annually, nearly 25 percent of those were used by approximately 52 million Americans for something other than a medical reason.”  Perhaps this is one of the reasons that recent reports have stated that the number of deaths arising out of use/misuse of prescription medications has surpassed deaths relating to illegal drug use.

It has been recently published that prescription medications resulted in more deaths in 2010 than all illegal substances combined.  The problem is in all states, even in Montana.  A link to an article in the Billings Gazette about one situation:  http://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/montana/prescription-drug-abuse-on-the-rise-in-butte/article_f153d313-e7b0-51ad-9ae6-12fe8d900932.html

For Immediate Release

February 3, 2012

National Workers’ Compensation Coalition Merges with CLM

New York, NY — The Claims and Litigation Management (CLM) Alliance is pleased to announce that the National Workers’ Compensation Coalition (NWCC) is merging with the CLM. The NWCC is a premier workers’ compensation association focused on sharing best practices, networking and educational programming for those in the workers’ compensation defense industry.

“We’re excited to welcome the NWCC to the CLM. Their work in providing resources to the workers’ compensation industry parallels the services the CLM provides,” says Adam Potter, Executive Director of the CLM. “By merging both organizations, we have strengthened the CLM’s resources in workers’ compensation and are able to offer NWCC members the full spectrum of resources provided by the CLM.”

“We created the NWCC to fill a void in the workers’ compensation defense industry,” says Rich Lenkov, President of the NWCC. “ While we’ve been able to create many great educational and networking opportunities for our members, we believe now is the perfect time to join forces with the CLM so we can expand our offerings and reach a broader audience.”

The first significant workers’ compensation event for 2012 will be the CLM’s Workers’ Compensation Mini Conference held in Columbus, Ohio, on June 15. Lenkov will serve as co-chair of the CLM’s workers’ compensation committee and along with other NWCC representatives will work to ensure that all CLM workers’ compensation educational programs meets the needs of those in the industry. NWCC members will also contribute to workers’ compensation content to Litigation Management and Claims Management magazines.

About the CLM
The Claims and Litigation Management Alliance (CLM) is an inclusive, collaborative organization that promotes and furthers the highest standards of claims and litigation management and brings together the thought leaders in both industries. CLM’s Members and Fellows include risk and litigation managers, insurance and claims professionals, corporate counsel, outside counsel and third party vendors. The CLM sponsors educational programs, provides resources and fosters communication among all in the industry. To learn more about the CLM, please visit www.theclm.org.

Contact:
Adam Potter, Executive Director
Claims and Litigation Management Alliance
212-724-2345
adam.potter@theclm.org

Michael J. Marsh, President of Midland Claims Service, Inc. and Industrial Injury Claims, is a fellow of the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance.