by NJLawyer | Jan 19, 2019 | Accident Cases, Work Injury
When an Emergency Room doctor performs an operation that saves a life in New Jersey due to a work accident, the doctor usually ends up fighting an insurance carrier over how much is a reasonable fee for his or her professional services. In a published decision, an Appellate Division Three-Judge Panel just rebuked arguments made by the Insurance Council of New Jersey, whose members are 16 Insurance Companies who do business in New Jersey, by holding that doctors have six years to file a claim in the New Jersey Workers Compensation Court for unpaid or partially paid medical bills rather than two years as advocated by the Insurance Council of New Jersey and the insurance companies involved in the appeal.
The 2012 Amendment
In 2012, the New Jersey State Legislature amended the Workers Compensation law to provide that disputes over unpaid medical bills matters involving work accidents had to be filed in the Workers Compensation Court. The amendment to the law codified case law which had stated that medical bills related to Workers Compensation should be resolved in the Workers Compensation Court rather than the Superior Court of New Jersey.
Time Periods to File Claims
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by NJLawyer | Jan 12, 2019 | Accident Cases, Work Injury
In New Jersey, Volunteer Firefighters have a special section outlining their entitlement to Workers Compensation Benefits from the town they serve. The special section for Volunteer Firefighters was enacted by the Legislature to make sure that a volunteer firefighter, who is performing a laudable job receives temporary disability benefits, medical bills paid and permanency benefits if they are injured on the job. Volunteer Firefighters are deemed to be at work during their travel to the firehouse or site of a fire. With some exceptions, a worker isn’t covered under the Workers Compensation Law while commuting to work. It makes good public policy to provide coverage to Volunteer Firefighters because their service saves townships throughout New Jersey a lot of money by eliminating the need for a full time fire service and Volunteer Firefighters also save lives and property a benefit to the communities they serve.
Supreme Court Accepts Appeal
The New Jersey Supreme Court accepted an appeal from a decision by a three judge panel in the Appellate Division which upheld the decision of a Workers Compensation Judge not to award temporary disability benefits to an injured volunteer firefighter. The Workers Compensation Statute provides temporary disability benefits to volunteer firefighters. It even provides temporary disability benefits at the maximum rate allowed for the year of the accident. So why was the temporary disability benefit denied. The Workers Compensation Judge found that the Volunteer Firefighter did not have a “wage loss” because the Volunteer Firefighter, at the time of the accident, was not employed. The Firefighter had stopped working to take care of her ailing father. The Appellate Division agreed with the decision stating that without a “wage loss” there could be no temporary disability benefits.
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by NJLawyer | Jan 5, 2019 | Accident Cases, Contagious Disease
When Mahogany Clifton had a work accident and injured her shoulder, she never thought that she would be at an attorney’s office talking about a lawsuit against the surgical center her doctor chose to do a routine shoulder surgery to fix a shoulder tear. Mahogany Clifton, however, was one of the persons at a Press Conference who was potentially exposed to the HIV and the Hepatitis virus at the HealthPlus Surgery Center in Saddlebrook NJ. To be clear, Mahogany Clifton has not yet undergone blood testing for HIV or Hepatitis, but her anxiety over the potential for either infection showed in her face at the Press Conference.
Department of Health Inspection & Immediate Closure
The Department of Health
of New Jersey shut down the Health Plus Surgical Center located at 190 Midland
Avenue, Saddle Brook on September 7, 2018,
after an inspection on that day found unacceptable sterilization practices,
poor drug storage methods, and an
outdated infection control plan among other violations. One particular egregious sterilization
violation was the improper use of drug vials for more than one patient which
could spread a virus if the vial is contaminated and then used for another
patient. Another was the improper use of sterilization oven by overcrowding and
not allowing the instruments to cool (part of the sterilization procedure) which
would result in surgical instruments not being sterilized.
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by Attorney | Jul 4, 2018 | Accident Cases
Fireworks Coming Soon
In 2017, ex-Governor Chris Christie signed a law passed by the New Jersey Legislature allowing for the sale, possession, storage, and use of certain sparklers and other non-exploding, non-aerial fireworks by persons 16 years of age or older. Several local stores and fireworks vendors have started to sell fireworks in New Jersey. (more…)
by Attorney | Jun 23, 2018 | Accident Cases
School Bus Crash Only 1 of 3 other Fatal Crashes on Route 80 in Mt. Olive New Jersey.
On May 17, 2018, Paramus School Bus Driver Hudy Muldrow, 77, after being the 2nd of 3 bus drivers who missed a turn off to his destination attempted to correct his error and avoid a delay in getting to his destination by going across three lanes of traffic to get to an Official Vehicle U-Turn area in the middle median on Route 80 in Mt. Olive New Jersey.
The driving maneuver was described as crossing in an almost perpendicular to the lanes of traffic on Route 80 to reach an Official Vehicle U-Turn in the middle median.
The pictures of the Paramus School District School bus on its side in the center median with its upper passenger area separated from the buses chassis which was in the roadway make it possible to visualize the horrific crash.
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by Attorney | Sep 9, 2017 | Accident Cases
What to do if in an accident.
The convenience of using an App on your smartphone to call for a taxi ride with companies like Uber and Lyft has increased the number of individuals opting to use these ride-sharing car services. There is a difference between a traditional Taxi Company insurance policy and a Ridesharing insurance policy.
A traditional Taxi Company in most cases has liability insurance for its vehicles. These policies vary in the amount of insurance coverage provided. Some policies cover for injuries, medical expenses and other losses caused by an accident. These insurance limits vary however depending on the Taxi Company.
Earlier this year, the New Jersey Legislature passed a law entitled the Transportation Network Company Safety and Regulatory Act which governs ridesharing car services like Uber and Lyft. In many ways but not all, you are provided better insurance in a ridesharing car service that is complying with the new ridesharing law. (more…)
