Workers Compensation

California insurers are fuming over a judge's dismissal of criminal charges against a Santa Ana doctor who was accused of overbilling in workers' compensation cases. The doctor faced multiple charges of running up fees by charging from the moment a patient arrived at his office rather than when the examination began.

The president and vice president of a Lakewood employment agency have been arrested on suspicion of workers' compensation fraud and grand theft, authorities said Tuesday. Joann Idleman, 64, and Sidney Bradpiece, 63--president and vice president, respectively, of Preferred Personnel of California--were arrested Monday at their homes by state fraud investigators and sheriff's deputies.

More than a year after the North Hollywood shootout in February 1997 left two robbers dead and 11 police officers hurt, the most seriously wounded officers--Martin Whitfield and Stuart Guy--are too injured to work but are without pensions or other police in comes. Since their Injured On Duty pay, which lasts a year, ran out last month, the officers have been living on $465 a week in state workers' compensation payments.

California authorities assessed penalties totaling $1.27 million last year against workers' compensation insurance companies and other workers' comp claim administrators, up from $1.16 million the year before. "We are finding unacceptably high amounts of unpaid compensation due to injured workers, late payment of benefits and failure to notify employees of their rights to benefits in a timely manner," said Casey L.

A 39-year-old man has pleaded guilty to charges of workers' compensation insurance fraud and perjury in connection with an alleged conspiracy between his employer and an Encino-based chiropractor. Wilbur D. Mace of Northridge changed his plea from not guilty to guilty Tuesday. He faces up to five years in state prison and is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 14 in Ventura County Superior Court.

West Covina Police Chief John T. Distelrath, who has been on paid leave since last month while the city has investigated misconduct allegations against him, has filed a workers' compensation claim, saying "continuous stress and strain" have impaired his ability to work, officials said Tuesday. Distelrath, a 31-year law enforcement veteran, began his paid leave Dec. 7. West Covina City Atty.

Seeking to reduce the growing burden of workers' compensation benefits and associated costs on city coffers, the City Council approved a motion Friday aimed at finding ways to reduce job injuries and return employees to work more quickly. The motion, sponsored by City Councilwoman Laura Chick, calls for a series of measures to help reduce the number of workers' compensation claims. The city loses the equivalent of 600 full-time employees a year to work-related injuries and illnesses, Chick said.

A city official who told police that activist Danny Bakewell slammed him against a wall during a City Hall meeting and then withdrew the complaint has filed a workers' compensation claim against the city, saying the attack left him with a back injury and sore upper neck. Fred Jones, a senior project manager for housing and development, has been on sick leave since Oct. 15, city officials said. Jones alleged in a police complaint that Bakewell, 52, assaulted him in a Sept.

A Palmdale resident and former Los Angeles Bureau of Sanitation worker has been arrested for allegedly trying to defraud the city out of $50,000 in workers' compensation, officials said. Renoir Valenti, 36, a waste-water treatment mechanic, was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly filing a fraudulent disability claim and lying about his disability, said Diana Britt, chief of the Workers' Compensation Division of the city personnel department.

Workers who are fired after suffering injuries on the job can sue their employers for disability discrimination, the California Supreme Court ruled Monday. The decision overturns 16 years of lower-court rulings and clears the way for thousands of injured workers to collect potentially large damage awards when they are fired after being injured on the job and refused reasonable accommodations to continue working.