CART BEFORE THE HORSE?

Speaker of the House John Harris has appointed me to be co-chair of a Workers’ Compensation Task Force to review SB130, the bill that passed the legislature last session, to determine how it might be improved. The Task Force is required by SB130.

Legislative Task Force Members:

Sen. Ralph Seekins, Co-Chair, Fairbanks
Rep. Bob Lynn, Co-Chair, Anchorage
Sen. Gretchen Guess, Anchorage

Public Task Force Members:

John Duddy, M.D. - Alaska State Medical Association
Rod Betit - Alaska Hospital and Nursing Home Association
Michael Jensen - Employee Workers' Compensation Attorney
Trena Heikes - Employer Workers' Compensation Attorney
Kevin Dougherty - Organized Labor Representative
Ted Quinn - Unorganized Employee Representative
Constance Livsey - Insurance Industry Representative
Jamie Slack - Self Insured Employer Representative
Linda Lewis - Small Business Representative
Everett Billingslea - Large Business Representative

I’m very pleased with the appointment. I’ve always supported the concept of some sort of Task Force to work on critical workers’ compensation issues. It seems to me, however, the “cart has been put before the horse.” I think the Task Force may have been more appropriate before SB130 was passed

The task force will hold its first organizational meeting in late September. It must issue a report to the Speaker of the House and the Senate President by December 1, 2005