The July meeting of the Central Valley Chapter of Applicants’ Attorneys Association was held on Wednesday, July 19, 2006.
Our guest speaker was The Honorable Juan Arambula, assembly member, 31 st District. Assembly member Arambula was accompanied by his chief of staff, Amy Arambula. Assembly member Arambula outlined recent litigation that he has voted for that involved labor and workers’ compensation issues.
A question and answer session followed regarding the legislative prospects for a permanent disability schedule revision and other related legislative matters.
The August meeting of the Central Valley Chapter of the California Applicants' Attorneys Association was held on Wednesday, August 16, 2006.
Rachel Freeman, apprenticeship consultant, of the State of California, Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Apprenticeship Standards, was the guest speaker. Ms. Freeman gave a talk on the Division of Apprenticeship Standards’ apprenticeship programs. Ms. Freeman discussed the apprenticeship opportunities available in the Central San Joaquin Valley and the ways to access the apprenticeship opportunities. A question and answer session was held after Ms. Freeman’s presentation.
She also provided the members attending with printed information on apprenticeship opportunities.
Given that the vocational rehabilitation statutes have been repealed, apprenticeship opportunities might be available to some of our clients.
Chapter President James Witherow reported that the Fresno judges were considering a Petition to Governor Schwarzenegger to upgrade safety at the State Building where WCAB hearings are held. The safety measures would include a metal detector and peace officers at the State Building. The potential Petition was discussed amongst the members. The main concern was that all exists be included in any safety upgrades.
The next meeting of the Central Valley Chapter was on September 20, 2006, at the Downtown Club in Fresno. The topic will be strategies to survive and thrive using AMA Guides given by San Joaquin Chiropractic and Rehabilitation and Central California Sports Medicine & Orthopedics.
Chapter President James Witherow discussed the future disposition with the old copier that was provided by the local CAAA chapter. It was agreed that the copier could either be sold or donated to charity.
John Arakelian, D.C., of San Joaquin Chiropractic and Rehabilitation gave a discussion about his practice. Dr. Arakelian currently has associated with Charles Lewis, M.D., an orthopedic surgeon. Dr. Lewis’ business is called Central California Sports Medicine and Orthopedics.
Sana Khan, M.D., Ph.D., of TRUEMRI gave an informative presentation on the AMA Guides. Dr. Khan outlined the criteria for the selection of the primary treating physician with the new laws. Dr. Khan also discussed apportionment and methods for maximizing permanent disability.
The next meeting of the Central Valley Chapter will be held in October, 2006, at noon at the Downtown Club in Fresno. The meeting date and time will be announced prior to the meeting.
MONTEREY BAY CHAPTER
Andrew J. Lynch, Esq., President
On May 17, 2006, Dr. John Massey of the Bay Area Pain and Wellness Group in Los Gatos gave a presentation about their services for injured workers. Our our July meeting, Dori Rose Inda, Executive Director of the Watsonville Law Center, gave a presentation about the law center and their activities, including the Workers' Compensation Enforcement Collaborative, which has been formed to ensure that low wage immigrant workers have access to medical and related workers' compensation benefits. One barrier to processing an injured worker's claim is employer fraud. Discussion on the topic was presented. At the September meeting, Nora Hochman, union activist from Santa Cruz, spoke on minimum wage issues.
Monterey Bay Chapter meets third Wed every month at La Scuola Restaurant in Castroville.
SACRAMENTO
Maureen Burns, Esq., President
There were no Sacramento Chapter meetings for the months of July and August 2006 following the summer convention. The Sacramento Chapter meeting was held September 7, 2006 with nearly 30 members attendance. All members were urged to contact the governor's office and urge him to sign the pending bill authored by Senator Perata and approved by both the Assembly and Senate. The Sacramento DEU rater Kathy Patterson spoke about current rating issues at the DEU. She commented it is important to carefully review reports before submitting them for rating because many reports are coming in that aren't properly outlining disability under the AMA guides. The next meeting topic will be announced soon for the October 5, 2006 chapter meeting, along with an agenda topic to potentially extend chapter officer terms from one to two years. We will continue to hold the meetings at Montiko's on Arden Way
SCAAA
Adam Dombchik, Esq., President
SCAAA would like to thank Cheryl Wallach for her service on the SCAAA Board for the last five years, including her commitment as President this past year. As of the October 18, 2006 meeting, the SCAAA officers are: Adam Dombchik, President; Harry Samargachian, President-Elect; Reuben Felstiner, Treasurer; George Roland, Secretary.
The October 18, 2006 meeting consisted of a panel of Keven Star, Court Administrator, Robert Hjelle, Presiding Judge of Santa Monica WCAB (soon to be Marina Del Rey WCAB), and Honorable Judge Seiden of the Santa Monica WCAB. Mr. Star and Judge Hjelle will be discussing upcoming administrative issues that will affect our practices, and the pending move the Santa Monica WCAB. Judge Seiden will be speaking on issues of substantial medical evidence in light of recent case law and SB 899.
In following months, look for diverse panels discussing such hot topic issues as Utilization Review and Medical Provider Networks, along with presenting future earning capacity loss evidence before the WCAB. If you have any suggestions for educational topics, feel free to contact any of the Board members or email Adam Dombchik at Adam@geklaw.com.
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