State of Illinois & Employee Misclassification

Several State of Illinois departments, including the Illinois Department of Labor, Illinois Department of Employment Security, Illinois Department of Revenue and Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, released a press release regarding a renewed education and enforcement initiative concerning independent contractors and employee misclassification.

As part of the initiative, the Illinois Department of Employment Security is providing a reference website regarding these issues.

 

Illinois Legislative and Administrative Code References

• Public Act 95-26:  820 ILCS 185 (Employee Classification Act)
• Illinois Administrative Code: 56 Ill Adm Code 240
• Illinois Workers' Compensation Act: 820 ILCS 305

820 ILCS 305/26.1

Sec. 26.1. Misclassification of employees as independent contractors. The Department of Labor, the Department of Employment Security, the Department of Revenue, the Office of the State Comptroller, and the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission shall cooperate under the Employee Classification Act by sharing information concerning any suspected misclassification by an employer or entity, as defined in the Employee Classification Act, of one or more employees as independent contractors.
 

(Source: P.A. 95-26, eff. 1-1-08.)

 

IWCC updates its Commissioners' Review Calendars

The Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission posted its Commissioners' Review Calendar update for the first half of 2013.

The Commissioners hear the appeals of IWCC arbitrators' decisions.  The IWCC handbook provides a general overview of the process:

Is it possible to appeal the arbitrator’s decision?

Yes. The employee and the employer each have the right to appeal a decision if dissatisfied. A panel of three commissioners (usually called the Commission) will review the arbitrator’s decision, as well as the evidence and transcript of the trial. Both sides may submit written arguments to the Commission. The Commission will then conduct a hearing (called an oral argument) at which the parties may present a brief, 5-10 minute argument for their position. Within 60 days of that hearing, the Commission will issue its decision.

While an appeal is pending, the employer does not have to pay the benefits awarded by the arbitrator. If the case is ultimately resolved completely in the worker’s favor, interest will be added to the award, based on governmental bond rates at the time of the decision. There is also a 1% per month interest charge on medical bills, payable to the medical provider. 

Commission decisions are final for cases involving employees of the State of Illinois. In all other cases, either party may appeal to the Circuit Court, the Appellate Court, and in some cases, to the Illinois Supreme Court. A chart at the end of this chapter illustrates the process.
 

All of the IWCC's calendars are available at the Calendars, Call Sheets, & Chicago Trials tab on its website.

Updated IDOI Administrative Code Changes

The next meeting of the General Assembly's Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) is currently scheduled for November 13, 2012. Both the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission (IWCC) and Illinois Department of Insurance (IDOI) have several proposed changes and updates to the Administrative Code pending with JCAR.

Since our previous pending-Administrative Code post, the Department of Insurance moved several additional rulemakings to JCAR's Second Notice.

 

Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission

No additional updates since our previous post. (Click here for our previous post covering both the JCAR process and the IWCC proposed rules status updates.)

 

Illinois Department of Insurance (updated)

JCAR Second Notice

The following proposed updates moved to JCAR's Second Notice review period. JCAR will consider these rules at its November meeting.

• Insurance Data Reporting Requirements (50 Ill Adm Code 4203) proposed 2/3/12 (PDF Page 9)
• Internal Security Standard and Fidelity Bonds (50 Ill Adm Code 904) proposed 6/22/12 (PDF Page 56)
• Accident and Health Expense Reporting (50 Ill Adm Code 2043) proposed 8/3/12 (PDF Page 24)

Pending Second Notice

As part of the JCAR's First Notice process for the new WC PPP rules, all interested parties were permitted to submit public comments about the proposed regulatory changes to the IDOI up until the June 11, 2012 deadline.

 

At this point, JCAR has not addressed the modifications to the existing rules

(50 Ill. Adm. Code 2051) with the IDOI at its monthly meetings, and, as of this post, the IDOI is not scheduled on the agenda for JCAR’s next meeting on November 13, 2012.

 

• Preferred Provider Programs (50 Ill. Adm. Code 2051) proposed 4/27/2012 (PDF Page 286)

 

IWCC Posts 2013 Arbitrators' Calendars

The Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission posted its 2013 Arbitrators' Calendars on the IWCC website.

IWCC Arbitration Calendars

• 2013 arbitration hearing sites
• 2013 Chicago arbitration schedule
• 2013 non-Chicago arbitration schedule

The IWCC maintains a Calendars, Call Sheets, & Chicago Trials page on its website which lists the remaining schedules for 2012 along with the new 2013 schedules referenced above.

IWCC October Board Meetings

There are two Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission board meetings scheduled for next week.

Both the IWCC's Commission Review Board meeting and the Workers' Compensation Advisory Board meeting are scheduled for Wednesday, October 24 at the James R. Thompson Center in Chicago.

Commission Review Board

The Commission Review Board's meeting is currently set for 10:00am in the Thompson Center's 8th Floor Chairman’s Conference Room.

Commission Review Board October agenda

A brief overview of the Commission Review Board from the IWCC's website:

Statutory reference: 820 ILCS 305/14.1. See also Part 7500 of the Rules.

Function: The board investigates complaints regarding misconduct made against arbitrators and commissioners of the Commission. While the board investigates allegations of misconduct, it has no authority to review or change arbitration or Commission decisions. 

Members: There are seven members on the board. The chairman of the Commission is the chairman of this board. The senior labor and management commissioner each serve on the board. Arbitrators elect one Chicago and one Downstate arbitrator. The chairman certifies the election of the arbitrators. Two members who are not commissioners, arbitrators, or Commission employees are selected by the governor.

 

IL Administrative Code Status Updates

Both the IWCC and IDOI are in the process of updating their rules and regulations through the Illinois General Assembly's Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR).  If you are unfamiliar with the Illinois rulemaking process, JCAR provides a succinct overview of the process on its website. 

The following is a status update on pending IWCC and IDOI additions and modifications to the Illinois Administrative Code:

Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission

JCAR "Certificates of No Objection"

JCAR issued "Certificates of No Objection" at its September 11, 2012 meeting for two separate IWCC administrative code updates. The IWCC can now adopt the rules by filing them with the Secretary of State. The effective dates will appear when published in a future Illinois Register.

• Miscellaneous (50 Ill Adm Code 7110) proposed 3/2/12
• Incorporates all of HB 1698/Public Act 97-18’s modifications and updates to the medical fee schedule reimbursement and methodology rules. (See our previous post with an outline of the major updates)
• Alcohol and Drug Sample Collection and Testing (50 Ill Adm Code 9140) proposed 6/15/12 (PDF document page 75)

JCAR Second Notice

The following proposed updates moved to JCAR's Second Notice review period. JCAR will consider these rules at its November 13, 2012 meeting.

• Arbitration (50 Ill Adm Code 7030) proposed 8/17/12 (PDF document page 72)
• Miscellaneous (50 Ill Adm Code 7110) proposed 8/17/12 (PDF document page 79)
• Incorporates the updates to the physician-dispensed pharmacy reimbursement methodology (see our previous update for more information)
• Commission Review Board Procedures (50 Ill Adm Code 7500) proposed 8/17/12 (PDF document page 96)

JCAR October Meeting Reminder

The Illinois General Assembly's Joint Committee on Administrative Rules' (JCAR) monthly meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, October 16, 2012.  The meeting is scheduled for 11:00am in Room 600C at the Michael A Bilandic Building (160 North LaSalle Street, Chicago).
 
The October agenda does not currently include updates from either the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission or Department of Insurance.

We will provide a status update on the proposed IWCC and IDOI Administrative Code updates early next week.  

National WC Premium Rate Ranking Study

The Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services' 2012 Oregon Workers’ Compensation Premium Rate Ranking Summary is now available.  This biannual report ranks the WC premiums of all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Illinois is ranked as the 4th highest premium in 2012 rankings, at 151% of the median states of Georgia & New Mexico, down one spot from 3rd highest premium in the 2010 study. 

The workers' compensation premium rates used for the study are from 1/1/2012, or late 2011 depending on the state, so they do not appear to include any of NCCI's current recommended rate changes for various states.  Our previous post detailed the announcement that the Illinois Department of Insurance is currently reviewing NCCI's recommended 3.8% decrease to the IL workers' compensation advisory and loss cost rates.

IWCC Dental Fee Schedule Effective Date

As previously posted, the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission modified its dental fee schedule rates and methodology. 

The IWCC updated its website yesterday with the effective date of that schedule.  The IWCC dental fee schedule will apply for all dates of service on or after June 20, 2012. 

The full IWCC post:

The Commission has posted a fee schedule for dental services provided on or after June 20, 2012. Bills should be paid at the lesser of the actual charge or the fee schedule amount.

As part of the changes instituted by HB 1698/PA 97-18, the legislature directed the Commission to create a dental fee schedule. Thanks to the Workers' Compensation Medical Fee Advisory Board and the Illinois State Dental Society for their help in obtaining and analyzing the needed data.

IWCC Dental Fee Schedule Posted

The new IWCC Dental Fee Schedule for Non-Hospital Regions 1-4 is now posted on the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission's website. 

As of this morning, the IWCC Instructions and Guidelines are still pending publication in the Illinois Register, but the new region-specific fee schedule reprice amounts for dental codes D0120-D9999 are available for review.

The codes are located on the IWCC's Medical Fee Schedule page, under the heading NON-HOSPITAL FEE SCHEDULES.

We will follow-up with additional posts when the IWCC publishes the effective date for the dental fee schedule and its Instructions and Guidelines.

Illinois-Specific WC Statistics

We received several inquiries regarding additional Illinois-specific WC statistics since last week's NCCI Illinois State Advisory Forum presentation post. 
 
In addition to workers' compensation industry research organizations (e.g., NCCI, WCRI, etc.), the IL Workers' Compensation Commission (IWCC), IL Department of Insurance (IDOI), and IL Department of Public Health (IDPH) have annual reports posted on their respective websites. These reports detail numerous components of Illinois' workers' compensation claims and departmental activities.
 

Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission

The most recent Fiscal Year Annual Report (FY 2011) is located under the Annual Report tab on the IWCC website.  Currently, its website contains reports dating back to Fiscal Year 1995.

In addition to its Annual Reports, the IWCC also provides links to other entities for workers' compensation statistics.
 

Illinois Department of Insurance

The IDOI publishes two WC-specific annual reports. 

• The 2012 Annual Report, submitted to the Governor's office on 6/29/2012, details the IDOI Fraud Unit's departmental activities.
• NCCI's 2011 Illinois Workers' Compensation Advisory Organization Data is submitted to the IDOI, and published on its website, on an annual basis. 

Illinois Department of Public Health

The IDPH publishes reports on both fatal and non-fatal occupational injuries under the Epidemiologic Studies tab on its website.