Employers and insurers should take note of a West Virginia Supreme Court decision involving permanent total disability thresholds. In March 2017, the Court issued its decision in Cooper v. Appalachian Power Company, determining that the Rule 20 spine impairment tables must be used when calculating whole body medical impairment ratings in WV.

Starting in January 2017, employers were required to start using a new I-9 form in West Virginia (WV) and nationwide. In a nutshell, the I-9 is the form that employers must complete in order to verify the identity and work eligibility of employees. 

The new I-9 form has frequently been updated, with the latest iteration being announced on July 17th, 2017. Both employers and employees are required to complete the form, with both citizens and non-citizens being affected by this legal requirement for employment. Employers who fail to use the new form "may be subject to all applicable penalties," according to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency ("ICE").

In 2017, the West Virginia Legislature amended several statutory provisions of the West Virginia Medical Professional Liability Act ("MPLA"), W. Va. Code § 55-7B-1 et seq, related to nursing home liability in WV. The WV MPLA governs the litigation of claims of medical malpractice liability in WV. The WV MPLA amendments provide a statutory definition of "occurrence" and set forth a shortened statute of limitation and preferred venue for claims brought against nursing homes, assisted living facilities, acute care hospitals or their employees, and other related entities.

The attorneys at Jenkins Fenstermaker, PLLC are often asked whether it’s permissible to use surveillance of workers’ compensation claimants in West Virginia and, if so, how that evidence may be used. Consider this common scenario:

The treating physician diagnoses the claimant with very serious conditions and prescribes many treatments, including the long-term use of opioid pain medications. Surveillance evidence would tend to make this treatment seem highly unnecessary. The employer wants to approach the treating physician with the surveillance to see if he will stop providing treatment that is clearly unnecessary in light of the tasks the claimant is seen doing in the surveillance video.

Do you routinely test employees for illegal drugs and alcohol when they are involved in a workplace accident? If so, you may incur the wrath of both the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the West Virginia (WV) Supreme Court. OSHA believes that employees may be afraid to report workplace injuries and illness for fear of retribution from their employers. That is why it has promulgated the "Final Rule to Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses," which may impact mandatory post-accident drug testing in WV and elsewhere.