House approves workers' compensation bill

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- A workers' compensation reform measure that supporters say will reduce legal costs and put more money in the pockets of injured workers has been passed by the Oklahoma House.

Wednesday, April 5th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- A workers' compensation reform measure that supporters say will reduce legal costs and put more money in the pockets of injured workers has been passed by the Oklahoma House.

Senate Bill 1606 by Sen. Scott Pruitt, R-Broken Arrow, would do away with the Oklahoma Workers' Compensation Court and replace it with an administrative process. But opponents said Tuesday that additional reforms are not needed.

"This doesn't address anything but bashing lawyers," said Rep. Chris Hastings, R-Tulsa, an attorney who has practiced in the state's workers' comp court. "I know it's fun to bash lawyers. I can't vote for it because it doesn't even make sense."

Oklahoma is one of only three states -- Tennessee and Nebraska are the others -- that continue to rely on a court system to administer workers' compensation claims.

Under the measure, attorney fees would be capped at 10 per cent of an injured workers' claim, said the bill's House sponsor, Minority Leader Fred Morgan, R-Oklahoma City.

"The system we have is not working," Morgan said. He said the only people who benefit from the system are the attorneys who practice in it.

The bill would create facilitators who would work to mediate workers' compensation claims and resolve them without litigation, he said.

"We're going to be reducing costs to employees. We're going to be reducing costs to employers," Morgan said. "It's a start in making real reform in our workers' compensation system." "We have a core problem with the workers' compensation system in Oklahoma. I want to fix that core problem," said Rep. MarkLiotta, R-Tulsa.

But Hastings said the appointment of conservative workers' compensation judges by Republican Gov. Frank Keating and other reforms have lowered workers' comp caseloads as well as costs.

"We have had workers' compensation reform," Hastings said. "Rates are down. Claims are down. People are getting their benefits."

Hastings said reforms have trimmed the number of workers' compensation cases that are actually litigated to about 20 per cent. And he scoffed at supporters' claims that the measure will reduce litigation and make the system less adversarial.

"When you're dealing with money and insurance, it's going to be adversarial," Hastings said. "It's a fairness issue."

Hastings said the measure is based on Florida's workers' compensation system and would create a second system for Oklahoma that would work alongside the existing court-based system, which would remain intact to administer cases already under way.

Responding to questions from Hastings, Morgan said he does not know how much the proposed administrative system would cost.

"We're giving the injured worker another option," Liotta said. "We're not eliminating any benefits."

The measure passed 89-10 and now goes to a House Senate conference committee for further work.