Is it still news if it’s not particularly “new”?

The Center for Study of Social Insurance has provided an estimate of the effect of the adoption of the AMA Guides for California’s workers’ compensation system.  Your typical California workers’ compensation defense attorney should be thanking his or her lucky stars for the adoption of the AMA Guides – a actual, scientific approach to rating disability, with a limit of quack doctors puffing up liability and impairment – a dream come true!

The estimate looked at the years of 2010 through June of 2011 as compared to the years 2003-2004, specifically looking for total rating, total pay-outs, and other indicators of that sort.  The results are no particularly surprising but still deliciously wonderful to hear:

A 40% drop in ratings before apportionment for unrepresented cases and a 28% drop in represented cases (it appears that it is worth it for applicant’s to retain an attorney).

A 52% drop in compensation for unrepresented cases and a 37% drop in represented cases.

And, the best part of all, a 25% reduction in cases that would have had some rating of permanent disability.  Bear in mind – that is with Almaraz/Guzman trying to worm its way through the heart of the AMA Guides and the 2005 reforms.

The governance of California is a book riddled with errors big and small – it does not appear that history will regard moving from the 1997 schedule to the AMA Guides to be among them.