H-1829

WHEREAS, Vocational rehabilitation of injured workers is limited to the low standard of minimum wage jobs for finding gainful employment which is not a meaningful standard for restoring the economic status of injured workers; and

WHEREAS, There is no meaningful judicial oversight of vocational rehabilitation issues, in part because the Department of Labor and Industries has sole discretion to offer services; and

WHEREAS, The department has increased spending on vocational rehabilitation services, but uses only a fraction of the counselors that were offering services in 1985; and

WHEREAS, There is concern that the number of families receiving welfare benefits has increased since the repeal of mandatory vocational rehabilitation; and

WHEREAS, Very few injured workers receive job placement assistance and a significant number of injured workers remain on temporary disability compensation for extended periods of time; and

WHEREAS, These injured workers may find it extremely difficult to reenter the labor market and return to fully productive lives; and

WHEREAS, Any savings that may be identified in the program has come at great cost to injured workers; and

WHEREAS, There is a lack of consistency in handling claims between sections in the department, and because the object of the industrial insurance system is both to compensate workers for the economic hardship suffered while recovering from an industrial injury and to assist workers in returning to employment, these objectives may best be reached with effective and comprehensive claims management that promptly provides benefits and promptly determines the injured worker's ultimate claims status; and

WHEREAS, More information is needed about the rate of reinjury of injured workers who return to work and the impact of reinjury on employers' rates; and

WHEREAS, The number of total permanent disability pensions continues to increase; and

WHEREAS, The cost containment program has increased the paperwork for providers and has encouraged claims managers to interfere with the provider's medical practice, resulting in providers refusing service to injured workers; and

WHEREAS, Legislators receive a high number of complaints about industrial insurance issues; and

WHEREAS, There is a perceived need for an independent ombudsperson for injured workers and for employers; and

WHEREAS, There have been suggestions that employers are firing employees for filing industrial insurance claims; and

WHEREAS, The use of panel examinations should be reexamined in light of recent court cases giving special weight to the opinion of the attending physician; and

WHEREAS, The number of appeals to the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals has increased significantly since 1985; and

WHEREAS, These concerns suggest that rates may be negatively impacted unless further steps are taken to reform the industrial insurance system;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, By the House of Representatives of the state of Washington, the Senate concurring, That a task force on workers' compensation be established to review the state's industrial insurance system as administered by the Department of Labor and Industries and make recommendations for its improvement; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the task force consist of up to twenty-five voting members, as follows:

(1) Three members from each caucus of the Senate, appointed by the President of the Senate; at least one member from each caucus shall be a member of the Senate Commerce and Labor committee;

(2) Three members from each caucus of the House of Representatives, appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives; at least one member from each caucus shall be a member of the House of Representatives Commerce and Labor committee;

(3) Up to thirteen members appointed jointly by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives to include geographical representation and to fairly represent the following: Injured workers; business including self-insurers; the medical profession; facilities providing vocational rehabilitation services; the legal profession; agriculture; labor; the private insurance industry; self-insured public employers; and the vocational rehabilitation profession; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the task force members shall select one nonvoting member to be its chair. The chair shall not represent any group represented on the task force and shall not be a member of the legislature or a state agency employee. The task force shall select its vice-chair from among its membership; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Department of Labor and Industries shall cooperate with the task force, providing information and technical assistance, as is reasonably required by the chair; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the task force, where feasible, may consult with individuals from the public and private sector or ask such persons to establish an advisory committee; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the task force shall use legislative staff and facilities, but may hire additional staff with specific technical expertise if such expertise is necessary to carry out the mandates of this resolution. All expenses of the task force, including travel, shall be paid jointly by the Senate and the House of Representatives. All expenses and hiring of additional staff shall be subject to the approval of the House of Representatives Executive Rules Committee and the Senate Facilities and Operations Committee as required by Joint Rule 26; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the task force may receive such gifts, grants, and endowments as may be made from time to time, in trust or otherwise, for the use and benefit of the purpose of the task force and expend the same or any income therefrom according to the terms of the gifts, grants, or endowments; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the task force report its findings and recommendations to the legislature by December 1, 1991; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the task force shall expire July 1, 1993.