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CORPORATE CRIMEFIGHTERS OF AMERICA -- Wednesday, January 7, 2004 ====================================================== Please Pay For The Subscription To Keep Our Work Going - $15/Yr Minimum, More If You Feel This Is Important Work And Can Afford It. P.O. Box And Paypal Link At Bottom: ====================================================== ANY HELP AVAILABLE IN TEXAS? Ashley Brewer ashdb0327@yahoo.com hello, My name is Ashley Brewer, I live in Texas and need help! I have been dealing with Unum for several years now and have not yet gotten anywhere with them. I am almost 26 years old and was in a car accident a little over 5 years ago that has caused me to have severe back problems. I was denied by Unum in 2001 and have been trying to find an attorney ever since, but have had problems because my monthly benefit that I would receive is only about $1,250. Although my benefit amount is not that much, it is all that I am owed and it does not change the fact that they "screwed" me just like they have all of these other people. I have two torn and herniated discs at L4-L5, L5-S1 and had a morphine pump implanted last June to help control the pain. Unum refuses to even look at all of the new proof that I have about my condition. I was originally denied because they felt that since I was able to take a flight to Connecticut at Christmas, that I was able to work since I did not follow the Doctor restrictions of not sitting or standing, etc. for any long period of time--like a 5 hour flight is anything you can compare to working 50 hours a week, every week. They never once asked me how I felt after making that trip or how I felt during the flight!!! I don't know what I feel that you could help me with but I figured you may be able to give me some advice. Thank you for your time and for putting your story out there--I hope that all goes well for you and hope that everything goes through for you at the appeal--- maybe one day we will be able to put Unum out of business before they hurt anyone else. Sincerely, Ashley Brewer Webmaster's note: If there are any lawyers or others in Texas with help or advice, write Ashley at ashdb0327@yahoo.com The way Unum twists things is incredible. What in hell does sitting in a plane for a few hours on a one-time basis for necessary reasons have to do with being able to stand the pain of herniated disks for forty hours a week. It's pretty damn obvious that if you have a morphine pump you are not only in great pain but so continuously that you would be incapable of any sort of employment. I mean, the first thing they do when you apply for a job is a drug test because they know that someone incapacitated by drugs would be a danger on the job. They should let someone on a morphine pump run the stoplights outside of Unum headquarters, and that would certainly cut down on the excess population of evil men ;') ====================================================== JOAN HANGARTER'S UNUM SURVIVORS BULLETIN BOARD! "Join my new message board to share not just the horror stories but the successful ones as well. Let us know how you have managed to overcome not just the financial devastation but the emotional as well." --Joan Hangarter Cut and paste this into your browser http://miraclemakersclub.com/id44.html and then click onto the message board! or http://www.bulletinboards.com/view.cfm?comcode=6016 Joan Hangarter Webmaster's note: I suggest using the top link first so you can see what Joan is about, the use the second one for quick connecting. Joan is the woman who got a multimillion dollar award from Unum for their dastardly deeds, which they of course refuse to pay. In California she was referred to as the "welfare millionaire." All those newspaper reports decrying "big jury awards" that we often see are just so fraudulent because the press never mentions the award is seldom if ever given, stalled for years until the claimant becomes destitute, and is usually reduced or even thrown out by some corrupt appellate judge who has gotten lots of free vacations and "speaking" fees from the insurance industry. The bulletin board linked above will download some Java applets the first time so there may be a delay in which you don't see messages. It says this takes a minute, but for me it took longer and I had to restart my browser. After the initial applet download things should go smoothly, though - and it may go quicker for you - I have a screwy home-built computer system. I would urge victims to subscribe since this BBS will fulfill a different function than my newsletter, which is, well, largely insurance news - along with victim appeals, some editorializing, and whatever I find interesting or illuminating, usually about corporate corruption. ;') Joan's bulletin board is more for mutual support, networking and discussion. And those things are also needed. Maybe Joan will take over. I've had 92 more unsubscriptions. I guess I'm telling too many unpleasant truths lately. If no one wants to hear the truth, maybe I'll start doing something else because I'm not going to stop telling it. Not if I go down to One subscriber and that is me ;') If I start bending the truth to get "votes" I'll be just like the politicians I loathe, who say anything to get elected then do the opposite to get corporate money. I figure the folks who left will keep getting screwed by corporations and when they Really look into who is supporting those corporations in their wrongdoing, they may eventually realize I was telling the truth and re-subscribe, poorer but wiser. Some people just take a longer time learning than others - they require more two-by-fours upside the head to see reality as it is. But I have confidence in what I am saying. Reality may be a slow and painful teacher, but it is definitely a truthful one. I have noticed a number of times that things I say one year which some subscribers complain are amazing or offensive turn out to be true the next year. And the year after that the laggard finally catches on (sometimes ;') ====================================================== INSIDE UNUM PROVIDENT (Our mole continues the dish on Unum Provident) Don't Shoot the Messenger! Shortly after the merger a story circulated among the claims handlers in Portland. It went like this. Jim Orr III (the former CEO), and a Manager were on an elevator going to the 5th floor. The elevator stopped on the 6th floor and a Claims Handler got on. Jim Orr looked at the Claims Handler and said with a big smile " NOW, this is an IMPORTANT elevator!" Shortly after the merger, Harold Chandler, Ralph Mohoney, and a Consultant were on an elevator going to the 5th floor. The elevator stopped on the 6th floor and a Claims Handler got on. Harold Chandler looked around, then quickly pushed the stop button for the 7th floor. When the elevator stopped, Ralph Mohoney kicked the Claims Handler off the elevator. When the door shut, Chandler said " NOW this is an IMPORTANT elevator!" What a story, huh? The next time you feel like killing your claims adjuster imagine yourself being kicked off the elevator on the 7th floor. In the UNUM Provident claims organization, the claims handlers are not valued employees, since they are not specialized in any specific skill such as a vocational specialist, doctor or nurse. Claims handlers do not make claims decisions, the Consultants do. If you think the person you are speaking to about your claim is the person who makes the decision to pay or deny your claim, you couldn't be more wrong. Claims handlers do exactly what they are told to do. The letters you receive from your claims handler have been rewritten by the Consultant. Claims handlers are told to make claims decisions they do not agree with. Claims handlers may NEVER say "no" and keep their jobs. Claims handlers are forced to participate in mandatory roundtables where we know the goal is to decide how to deny a claim with the least resistance. After all, we aren't stupid. We're forced to tell you we haven't make a decision on your claim yet when we know your claim is being held up in the Consultant's office for a denial validation. Claims handlers are taught to challenge your credibility through surveillance and data base checks. We are forced to participate in "mock" roundtables used as marketing tools whenever prospective customers come on the floor. The Provident claims adjuster is merely a trained administrative clerk who continually pushes your claim through the endless risk resources which I call "stacking the deck." Once everyone has "signed off" on your claim, the claims handler puts together what they think the letter will look like and forwards it to the Consultant for "validation." The Consultant re-writes the letter, forcing the claims handler to sign something they did not write. The actual decision on your claim is made by the Consultant, not the Claims Handler. In the Provident Organization claims handlers make anywhere from $35,000 to $60,000 per year. In Maine the average pay rate per hour is $10.00, so working for UNUM Provident is a bonus to many young couples. The claims system only works if all of the claims adjusters work quietly in their designated work stations, doing what they are told. The claims system starts to break down, however, when a claims handler here, or a claims handler there, starts speaking up and pointing out to management and everyone else, that there are manipulations and unfair denials taking place. Those who do engage in any type of whistleblowing are swiftly terminated. The next time you're ready to blame the claims handler for the numerous errors, and mis communications related to your claim, try to remember the claims handler at UNUM Provident is not a valued employee, nor are they generally treated with respect. To some extent the claims handlers are deliberately kept "ignorant" of important knowledge about claims adjudication. Only the Consultant is informed, so to speak, since they are the ones who have access to insurance reserves and assist the Director in managing the business. Don't assume the claims handling role is administrative either. It is a "production" job, pure and simple, the same as if one were working in a sewing factory or clothing mill. Claims come in, and claims are expected to go out, with the bottom line in your face every day. Those who can work with the system are rewarded, those who have a conscience, try to fix it, like I did. Now, I'm not a claims handler anymore, I'm just an ol' whistleblower, darn it! Webmaster's comment: I have a confession to make. Many years ago I was also a claims handler. And like Linda, I am no longer. I sure wish it wasn't always a choice between doing right and living well, but I guess that's why they call it "morality." It would be easy to do right if you got paid handsomely for it, and I can tell you for a fact that the Devil is a generous paymaster. Have you ever seen the suits insurance company lawyers can afford? I remember one woman whose natty pants suit probably cost more than my car ;') So I guess the whole point is that the right choice is nearly always the hard one. And any perusal of the daily press indicates that nearly everyone in corporate America is making the wrong choice. The right choice has its rewards, though. You get to live on peanuts and run strident websites ;') ====================================================== CORPORATEERS OF THE YEAR SANTA MONICA, CA - December 31 - The Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights (FTCR) today released its top 10 list of corporateering in 2003. The ranking tracks the worst instances of big industries putting their commercial gain above the interests of individuals and society. FTCR also announced the top five counter-corporateering advances. "The notion that the free market is more important than the free society was pushed to new heights during 2003," said FTCR president Jamie Court, who coined the term corporateering in his 2003 book Corporateering: How Corporate Power Steals Your Personal Freedom And What You Can Do About It (Tarcher/Putnam). "When the market is treated as more important than society, then individuals become shareholders in America rather than citizens with inalienable rights. At the same time, the counter- corporateering movement had a handful key victories this year that could set a new tone in 2004." Corporateering's Top 10 Lessons No. 10: Mutual Fund Managers Didn't Operate In The Mutual Interest. Thanks to New York Attorney General Elliot Spitzer the public found that "mutual fund" was a misnomer and not all investors were created equal. Some in the industry allowed big investors to break the rules and make big profits through illegal late-day trading -- allowing after-hours trades at earlier prices -- and market-timed trades -- quick purchases and sales for short-term profit. Insiders profited at the cost to average investors. The illusion of mutual funds as a means for Main Street to unite for wealth and power on Wall Street was shattered. No. 9: Any Company Could Hold Almost Half The Media World In Their Hand. New FCC rules put the media owners in the cat-bird seat to consolidate, for example allowing one company to own up to 45 percent of the nation's broadcast market. A Congressional compromise will barely change the rules of the game. When tv and radio stations merge, that means fewer newsgathering resources and a less free press. No. 8. Energy Profiteering Paid Big. Despite the well- documented profiteering of energy pirates during California's electricity crisis, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) refused to invalidate outrageous contracts, return ample money to the ratepayers and issue more than a slap on the wrist to the companies involved. No. 7. HMOs Made A Bigger Killing. The industry recorded a banner year for profits, becoming one of the best bets on Wall Street, while insurance became more unaffordable for average Americans due to skyrocketing premiums. The greed is best summed up in the pending merger of Wellpoint (parent of California Blue Cross) and Anthem, in which Wellpoint CEO Leonard Schaeffer stands to gain more than one third of a billion dollars from the deal. No. 6. Marketing Erotica To Pre-teens Went Mainstream. Abercrombie & Fitch led the kiddie-corporateering ring with catalogues for children featuring group sex scenes, scantly clad in-store models and pre-teen "eye candy" thong underwear. Marketing sex and violence to children became a growth industry. No. 5. Banks and Insurers Stamped Out State Privacy Rights On Capitol Hill. After losing a big financial privacy fight in California, banks and insurers went to Washington DC and convinced Congress and the President to wipe out all state financial privacy laws that are tougher than the weak Fair Credit Reporting Act. Under current federal law, corporations can trade our private financial information with their partners without consent like it is stock and bonds. No. 4. Innocent Victims of Medical Malpractice Lost Rights to Pay For Insurers' Bad Investments. Since the insurance industry racked up big losses during the Wall Street drought, injured patients in a handful of states had to pay with the loss of their legal rights to hold wrongdoers fully accountable. Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas, and Florida were among the states limiting how much victims could collect rather than limiting how much malpractice insurers could put into risky investments like Enron. No. 3. No-Bid Contacts In Iraq Take Taxpayers For Ride. Halliburton, Bechtel and other corporate heavies won no-bid contracts to rebuild Iraq at huge cost to the American taxpayer. Halliburton, formerly headed by Vice President Dick Cheney, received Pentagon contracts worth $1.7 billion and recently government auditors found the company overcharging the US for fuel. The war has been better to no one than these corporateers. No. 2. Medicare Was Prevented From Negotiating Cheapest Drugs Through Bulk Purchasing. Drug company campaign spending last election was key to giving the GOP both houses of Congress and the white house. That may be why the Medicare prescription drug law actually precluded the government from negotiating bulk discounts using the Medicare program's purchasing power. Taxpayers could be paying one third of current drug costs based on Canada's example. No. 1. State Farm Convinced The Supreme Court That Juries Shouldn't Have Control Over Punitive Damages. Punitive damages are designed to punish wrongdoers for malice and oppression. In State Farm v. Campbell, the Supreme Court overturned $145 million in punitive damages against State Farm Insurance Company and ruled that in the future punitive damages had to be in a single digit ratio to compensatory losses, preferably low single digits. This reversed a long-standing practice of allowing juries to make independent decisions about how to punish corporations and allowing them to correlate the amount of punitive damages with a company's ill-gotten gain from a reprehensible practice. Now that corporations can calculate their punishment as a tangible cost of doing business, it's likely products will become more dangerous and companies more callous to the public's complaints. Counter-Corporateering's Top 5 Victories FTCR noted fewer advances on the counter-corporateering front, but recognized the following gains. No. 5. Corporate executives now have to sign on the dotted line. Thanks to post-Enron reforms, executives now have to personally vouch for their company's books. That's led to a lot of request for filing extensions and CEOs taking the numbers more seriously. Many companies are even hiring compliance officers to make sure books are not cooked. No. 4. Whistleblowers began getting more respect. Reflecting a gaining cultural respect for dissent in the workplace, California enacted a law (sponsored by FTCR) increasing protections for whistleblowers and punishes corporations from withholding vital financial information. No. 3. Spammers were put on notice. Congress acted to begin stopping the electronic assault of commercial pitches in our email. Though far from perfect, the counter-strike has begun. No. 2. The public's right to campaign finance reform trumped the corporation's claim of free speech protection. The Supreme Court ruled that federal campaign finance reform rules were more important than the purported First Amendment right of industries to speak through unlimited campaign contributions. This was a major reversal of court rulings since 1976. No. 1. Telemarketers have to pay $11,000 for every privacy violation. The establishment of a federal "do not call" registry answered the public's anger at corporations invading our homes. It has also begun a precedent of making corporations pay hefty fines for not respecting our personal space and time. For more information, visit http://www.corporateering.org or http://www.consumerwatchdog.org. ====================================================== IT'S YOUR FAULT FOR BEING THERE I previously mentioned that Allstate once claimed someone who was hit by another car was partially at fault because if they hadn't driven that day they wouldn't have been there. Sure enough, someone wrote in that they had had a similar insane experience. See, I don't make this stuff up ;') ********************************** Jim, I just read your newsletter. There is something I want to comment on: --------------------------- excerpt from my previous newsletter ---------------- I am reminded of Allstate's claim in one court case that their insured was fifty percent liable for his own repairs after he had been hit by another vehicle, because if he had left his car in his garage the accident would not have occurred. Honest, they really tried that one on in court. I am still amazed. The judge should have had their lawyers bound and horsewhipped. -------------------------------- end of excerpt ----------------------------------- The car accident I was in that caused me to become disabled was apparently partially my fault. I was leaving my office parking lot at about 5:45 pm when another person, driving a Chevy Blazer truck at about 35 mph ACROSS THE EMPTY ROWS OF PARKING SPACES (all of which is illegal) hit me head-on. I was informed by the policeman who came to the scene that the woman was completely at fault. However, her insurance company said that they would not pay for all of the claim to repair my car because I was 10% to blame. When I asked why, the woman at the insurance company told me that 'if I hadn't been in that place at that time, there would have been no accident'. Keeping with that logic, it's the fault of the rape victim when she is raped because if she hadn't been where the rapist was when he felt like raping someone, she wouldn't have been raped. I don't know, maybe I'm losing my mind, but I thought that people in America had a right to do things as long as they didn't interfere the wishes of others also doing things legally. Apparently, if you happen to be doing something when another person decides to do something illegal, or at least, they decide to suspend common-sense and do something careless which causes harm, you are at fault for being the victim!! What do the victims' rights groups say about this? Is it fair to assume that cashier at the gas station was at fault when he went to work and got shot by someone robbing the gas station? It is CRAZY!! I've come to the conclusion that the ultimate goal of most people and companies today is to deny any responsibility for the actions of oneself or their business. And the big corporations are the worst!! Hang in there, someday, common sense my actually be common. Regards, Michelle Valenti MPAinc@msn.com ====================================================== KIPLINGERS Although I was alerted to the February Kiplingers Unum expose, and that it is more comprehensive than Business Weeks, I don't have a copy yet and don't see one on the stands. If anyone has already gotten one, send me a Good photocopy that I can scan in and OCR for the rest of you. I know what a wringer an insurance company can put you through so I don't want folks spending on a magazine when they don't have to. My postal address, as always, is at the bottom of this newsletter. ====================================================== JUST HOW BAD DO YOU WANT REFORM? To win the [workers] comp battle there are several things we have to do if at all possible whether we feel like it or not. THIS ONE IS A TOP PRIORITY 1. We have to stay in constant contact with our lawmakers and their staff over the phone, visiting the office, by email, and by snail mail. We have to contact all the lawmakers in our area and we have to do it at least once every two weeks. That has to start now because the session is growing near and if they don't hear from injured workers they will believe that we have no problems with the system. 2. We have to educate everyone around us. Friends, family, and the working class of America and get them asking their lawmakers what is going to happen to them and their families if they get injured at work. Make sure you educate these people about the horrors of the comp system well and also make them aware of the reforms we are seeking. Let them know how unbalanced the attorney situation is for injured workers. Especially here in Florida where they have restricted injured workers attorney fees but not the fees of attorneys for carriers and employers. Let them know that they may not be able to find an attorney in the near future, especially for medical and small claim petitions for benefits. 3. Make them aware of the new laws that went into effect October 1, 2003. You can find a summary of them at our web site by looking up SB 50 A. (www.voicesflorida.com). Let them know how difficult it will be for them to get a permanent disability rating due to this new law regardless of how serious their injuries may be or how much proof they may have. 3. If you have a printer, print out copies of our brochures at the web site and leave them in doctors offices and medical facilities. Give them to people you meet on the street and leave them in laundry mats and small stores. Leave brochures in businesses if you can get them in there but educate people. You can get copies of the brochures from our advocacy page or under brochures at www.voicesflorida.com. 4. Write all of your local newspapers and call all your television stations on a regular basis telling them about the problems in the comp system. You don't even have to tell your story. Just tell of the horror stories you have heard of and the conditions that exist in this broken system. Just have them go and read the stories at the www.workerscompensationinsurance.com website. Most of all tell people they really need to know what is going on in the comp system and to keep up with it. If they don't they could pay with their financial security, their health and possibly even their lives. Make sure they know that comp affects the whole family. Tell them waiting until it happens to them is too late to find out just how bad the system is. I know this sounds like a lot to do but if you ever want to see change in the comp system this is what it is going to take. Injured workers speaking out are not enough. We are but a small majority of the population. We have to get as many people as possible involved in this and we have to raise their level of concern for their own futures in the event they get hurt at work. We have to get these people to the legislative sessions beginning in March. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me. Please do all you can to help get us a fair reform. Mary Bailey President, VOICES Inc. Crs012001@cs.com www.voicesflorida.com 904-778-9344 Webmaster's note: Mary lives here in Jacksonville, FL, as do I. Wow, two injured worker activists in the same city - it's about the only Good thing I can think of in this city or state, whose politicians are wholly owned by corrupt corporations. But I guess that's the point. Since the forces of corruption are so horribly concentrated here there must be balancing forces for good. Although I still want to know why the devil pays his troops so handsomely and the angels only give their fighters moral support ;') And of course there is a large disparity in numbers. For every impoverished reformer or whistleblower there are ten thousand crooked politicians, lawyers and corporate executives. It seems awfully imbalanced. But then, I would never pick the bully's side anyway. That's no fun. Anyone can do big things if they are born into wealth and power and have every opportunity. I know folks like that who do big things, but they're all the Wrong things. Doing big things that are Good with zero resources is what makes the challenge interesting ;') ====================================================== ARCHIVES What with the Holidays, personal problems, the usual survival distractions, etc, I've fallen seriously behind on the newsletter archives, so they don't reflect all the newsletters I've put out. My apologies to folks who are searching the archives looking for stuff that isn't there. I hope to fix that by next month, maybe. I have a staff of one and he's not that well organized. And somebody needs to remind me to put a Search function back on the site - one that works. I'm always grumbling at websites that don't have a search function and here I seem to have lost mine ;') ====================================================== MR. MUSCLES IGNORES INJURED WORKERS (The destruction of the Kaleeforneeah Workers Comp System) Webmaster's comments: Why am I not surprised? All these homespun oh-so-friendly politicians, at least until they get your vote, put American workers at the bottom of the heap - far, far below corporate "contributors." To be frank, we will probably never see anything approaching Justice in these here United States. Anyone who thinks such a quality Actually exists in our system, other than faint lip service, is a tad delusional. Sometimes, after fighting for years, you may get a "legalistic" advantage and get about twenty percent of what you were entitled to, but Justice has almost nothing to do with the American judicial system. I sure wish they'd teach that in high school so folks wouldn't have to wait until middle age and a collision with their insurer to become terribly disillusioned. So many people around that age write me that their faith in the system was shattered. Well, the system was Always rotten, they just weren't a victim of it until then. I sure wish I could design the high school curriculum for the nation. If people were wised up sooner they would keep their eyes open and not get hurt so much. But of course, that's precisely Why our schools don't teach reality, or statistics, or logic and reason, or how to detect lies and false arguments that use emotional "buttons," deceptive visuals, and sound bytes. If they did teach folks to read between the lines, every one of our "leaders" would be out on their bums. I know I seem to carry on about this stuff, but if you learn one thing from all my missives, please learn to keep your eyes open, read between the lines, and look for spurious arguments that have everything to do with grabbing your emotions (usually hate or fear) and nothing to do with the actual state of affairs. Especially watch out for anyone who tries to get you angry or afraid of a particular group, because they are reaching either for your wallet or your freedom. Every time I see a surreptitiously sponsored insurance industry ad about "fat cat trial lawyers," for instance, I try to figure out how the insurers are planning to rob us or steal our right to fight back against them. Always think of Motivation. If someone wants the public to do something, try to figure out who gets a lot of money thereby. That can clear up a Lot of mysteries, and you'll find that a lot of flag-and-bible wavers are full of crap ;') I would bet, for instance, that the high-sounding "humanitarian" reasons for an illegal-alien amnesty have little to do with the milk of human kindness, and more to do with Texas and other border employers wanting terribly cheap labor that won't fight back or complain. They want scared workers who will work "off the clock" under the harshest, most life-threatening sweatshop conditions, and with no benefits or health care. If someone dies they'll bury them out back without a hiccup happening on the assembly line. After all, the condition of the amnesty is the employer has to vouch for you, so basically you'll put up with Anything no matter how horrible to stay in the states. "Pay them nothing, threaten them constantly, and work them to death." It's a Border employer's dream. The employers' claim that "Americans won't do those jobs" is just plain hogwash. I've worked at everything from slaughtering chickens to cleaning sewers here in Jacksonville and there were a lot of plain old Americans working right beside me, many for their entire lives. Of course, it's also a cynical ploy for the Latino vote in an election year. Just like our false economic "boom," based on a huge and growing deficit, which will probably last until a little beyond November 2004 when all the debt starts to come due. When the train finally goes off the tracks, it will be too late to change conductors. But you can bet most people will be fooled, since no one thinks beyond three months into the future these days. How in heck did the party of "fiscal responsibility" get to be the total opposite? Well, crooked and deceptive politicians make me wax prolix, so back to the words of our fighting friend Dina Padilla: ****************************************** "TERMINATION" OF THE CA WORKERS COMP SYSTEM The cuts that are proposed mean there will be no worker comp here in Ca. Nothing has worked for injured workers for well over a decade. We are dealing with Neanderthal mentality towards human beings. Dina In a message dated 1/6/04 8:48:29 AM Pacific Standard Time, thor@ecis.com writes: Legislation signed in late 2003 makes many important changes to the workers' compensation laws of California. The most significant changes involve limitations on medical treatment -- bad news for injured workers. The new laws take effect January 1, 2004 and do not apply to claims that were filed before January 1, 2004. Here are some highlights of the new laws: * new 24-visit cap on physical therapy and chiropractic appointments * new limits (reductions) on medical payments * longer time limit for employers to contest claims * new limits on and restrictive guidelines for types of medical treatment available * end of vocational rehabilitation system, and * repeal of the presumption of correctness of the treating physician. More from Dina Padilla: EVERYONE, I AM ONE OF 5 INJURED WORKERS WHO WILL BE PRESENT AT GOVERNOR ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER'S STATE OF STATE ADDRESS TONIGHT AT 5:PM PST. PRESENTED BY THE CALIFORNIA APPLICANT ATTORNEY ASSOCIATION(CAAA). I HOPE TO ASK HIM WHAT WILL THIS BARBARIC NEW WORKER COMP REFORM BENEFIT THE INJURED WORKER PAST AND PRESENT AND WILL THIS STOP THE CORRUPTION CREATED BY PAST WORKER COMP REFORM? DINA PADILLA VOICES-PRES-CA.-CHAPTER, PRESIDENT OF B.E.S.T MCRC-BOARD, MEMBER W.O.B.B.L.E, MEMBER CALIFORNIA INJURED WORKER COALITION I want to thank all of you who sent email supporting my efforts in going to the Capitol yesterday on behalf of injured workers. I arrived at the Capitol with another injured worker Colleen about 4:50 pm through huge crowds of both supporters and protestors of Gov. Arnold's state of the state address. I was informed by several of the Capitol Staff that CAAA was not on the list for Room 317. Around 5:30 pm the PR group and staff for CAAA arrived and we met and we introduced ourselves. One media camera was there from FOX 40 but none of us injured workers were interviewed. 8 injured workers were there to tell their stories about how the system doesn't work. The current legislation proposed by the new Governor has really been in practice since the past wc reforms that were passed by ex-gov-Pete Wilson, one of his current transition team. All they want to do now is legitimize the on going corruption of the worker comp. Earlier I had spoken with Andy Furillo with the Sac Bee and gave him the room # so that we could hopefully get him to attend this important meeting. We waited and waited and then we were asked to go outside to get to interviewed by any of the media attending this event. That did not happen. Mark Marcus a worker comp applicant attorney was interviewed by the AP. The AP journalist ignored Colleen and I to get our side of the worker comp failings. Mr. Azevedo the current CAAA President talked with the injured workers as did Mr. Mark Marcus. Several of the injured workers talked with each other and then we had to leave because of the rain and the cold. We as injured workers were ignored by politicians, media and the business community. We are THE product for their survival. When we become injured we cross over to an invisible line and became non-existent as human beings and become a THING that is to be ignored so the mistreatment can continue and that there is justification for that mistreatment resulting in never ending profit. Without injured workers including other disenfranchised folks such as the disabled, the elderly , the poor , the homeless, the medically mistreated, THE upper echelon of society could not exist in the high style of living that they have become accustomed to, as in hurting us. It's unfortunately a predatory society that we live in. It's us vs. them, the poor vs the rich. Conveniently created! The positive note I can mention in all of this is that while we did not get interviewed by the press and completely ignored by the powers that be, WE, the injured workers were still able to show that we were human beings just like the rest of them. The disenfranchised need to coordinate their efforts and exert their power to vote the bums out! I do sincerely appreciate all of your support. Dina Padilla ********************************** Webmaster's comment: Um, let me see, The Governor of CA is proposing a "reform" of worker's comp (like tort "reform") that will seriously affect millions of injured workers. So does he interview One injured worker? Does he talk to One injured worker? Does the media bother? Gee, wouldn't that make just a little sense? To talk to the people most affected. But then, if politicians did that they wouldn't have time to "talk" to all those insurance company and corporate lobbyists slithering in the back door of the Capitol with green bales of "contributions." And then you guys wonder why I'm a cynic about "justice" in America. Okay, the insurance stuff is over. I know, I put in subjects that are not strictly insurance, but corruption and politics Must to be mentioned. They are Married to the insurance industry. When politicians propose tort "reform" that will completely destroy our right to fight back against insurers, of course I have to mention it. And I have to mention who is backing these nasty measures. If you happen to support the politician who is stabbing you in the back, I can see where you might get mad at having your blindfold removed. So far, about 150 subscribers have beat it wailing out the back door, trailing their torn blindfolds behind them. The sunlight is painful if you've been kept in the dark. But maybe you'll also learn to protect your back ;') For instance, many years before he ran for President, my friends from Texas told me that G.W. Bush has was pushing tort "reform" as Governor. He is pushing it even harder now, and also wants all insurance cases removed to Federal court where they can be delayed even longer and the awards are smaller. If you have a pending claim and think he's your friend, he is not. This isn't politics - it's the plain old truth about a plain old shaft all insurance victims will be getting. And Puh-leeze don't write back telling me how wicked Clinton was. I didn't vote for his primary nomination myself. And I was Just as critical of him for pushing that awful abortion called NAFTA as I am of Bush for pushing tort "reform." NAFTA, along with other global corporatist moves, is shipping all our jobs overseas. It was a rotten idea and tort reform is a rotten idea. But the last three Presidents have pushed NAFTA and globalization for some nefarious reason, along with many idiots in Both parties. It reminds me of the last three mayors here in Jacksonville, FL, who all kept backing a huge white elephant transportation project called the "Peoplemover," even though everyone in town hates and ridicules it. It's an elevated set of kiddy cars that carries almost no passengers and goes nowhere at a cost of ten million bucks a quarter mile. At the same time, we have one of the worst bus systems in the South. You can't get to or from work or to or from events on it since it closes down too early, starts too late, and has too few crosstown routes. So even poor families have to waste money on a second car, since nearly every family now has two jobs. Money they could be putting towards college or a small business. Now why would three mayors in a row support something all the voters hate, yet not put a dime into Real mass transit that would actually get people places? (And good mass transit pays for itself ten times over.) Well, it has to do with the stranglehold some local construction companies have on City Hall. You can't skim millions for politician's pockets just by improving bus service and laying on new routes. But every crook since the Mafia knows that when you pour concrete you can skim a lot of dollars off the top. Oh, and here is the real joker. The city official who ran our rotten bus system into the ground while pouring dough into the "peopelmover" also owns the biggest chain of gasoline stations in town. Now, let me see - if the bus system was good he would sell less gasoline. Isn't that called, um, CONFLICT OF INTEREST! Honest to god, it amazes me that most people don't see this horrible stuff, but even when they do they put up with it. Because this incompetent schnook was then elected to be our mayor, with his only qualification being that he ran a rotten, failed bus system. But he did pour concrete for the construction mafia. And all that gas station money bought a lot of TV ads before the election. Much more than his populist opponent could afford. Not that the local newspaper, which they call the Times-Union and I call the Jacksonville Times-Bumwipe, ever reported this Vast conflict of interest between supervising a bus system that would cut down on gas sales if properly run, and owning a chain of gas stations that would then take a loss. They're also rabidly pro-corporate. And yes, I sent them documentation, but I might as well have made it into a paper airplane and sailed it out the window to see if God would read it and do the right thing. This is politics in America. And business in America. The worst thing about the corruption is that it has become so endemic that people are actually starting to accept it as the norm. Pretty soon high schools will have to teach Corruption 101 so folks know how to work the system. Our only hope is that the Internet becomes more powerful and is not silenced as some government officials want, so that the truth the media refuses to print starts to be seen by more and more people. I truly believe the Net is our last hope for freedom and prosperity to triumph against the increasing forces of darkness. That's why I'm sitting here at my computer instead of in some corporate or government office. Jim Mooney, webmaster Oh, PS, let's put it to a vote. Should I soften my rhetoric and tell less of the truth about who is supporting corruption so that I offend none and keep subscribers, or should I just tell it like it is? Give me some advice, those of you who are left ;') ====================================================== Please Pay For The Subscription To Support Our Cause - $15/Yr Minimum, More If You Feel This Is Important Work. If I Annoyed You Feel Free To Double Your Contribution ;') Send subscription fees or donations for our work to: James Mooney PMB # 106 4495-304 Roosevelt Blvd Jacksonville, FL 32210-3381 OR Via Paypal at: https://www.paypal.com/affil/pal=cybervigil@earthlink.net Jim Mooney, webmaster: www.micethatroar.com www.corporatecrimefighters.com UNUM'S SECRET "DESTROYED" CLAIMS MANUALS NOW AVAILABLE - Email manuals@micethatroar.com for details. Newsletter Archives are at: http://www.corporatecrimefighters.com/html/newsletter_archives.html |
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