ABC News investigation exposes woman on Price is Right but misses full story about workers compensation fraud.
ABC News investigation claiming skyrocketing fraud in the workers compensation system misses full story. It focuses on a woman who appeared on the Price is Right while collecting benefits. She looks healthy in the video despite claiming inability to work from a shoulder injury.
We acknowledge some bad apples exist but take issue with this sensationalist reporting. The general public is already under the impression that fraud is only perpetrated by claimants. This is simply untrue and there is more to the story.
Accident Fund, a leading provider of workers compensation insurance across the United States, says fraud occurs in less than 4% of claims. Claimants are frequently examined by insurance company doctors and followed by private investigators. False claims are quickly discovered.
Employers also commit fraud by underreporting the number of employees and misrepresenting the type of work performed. Misclassification of employees as independent contractors is another serious problem. It shifts the costs of work injuries to other payers like government programs and private health insurance. This ends up increasing costs for everyone.
In February 2014, we reported on a Michigan insurance executive who made the list of Top Ten Workersâ Compensation Fraud Cases. It had been reported by Crainâs Detroit Business that former CEO Jerry Stage pled guilty to embezzling approximately $2.6 million from the Compensation Advisory Organization of Michigan (CAOM) during an 11-year period. George Bauer, former bookkeeper for the organization, also pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to embezzle for his role.
Michigan Workers Comp Lawyers never charges a fee to evaluate a case. We have represented injured and disabled workers exclusively for more than 35 years. Call (855) 221-2667 for a free consultation.
Related information:
Our 2 cents on insurance company fraud
Photo courtesy of Creative Commons, by LGEPR.
