Page 4 December 7, 2017
Finance
Insurance Changes Bringing
Needed Relief to Medical Practices
By Rob McCarthy
A new law will make it possible for small
companies to afford workplace accident insurance
next year by loosening the rules on
privately-owned businesses, says the South
Bay lawmaker who sponsored the bill.
Senator Steven Bradford, D-Gardena,
said that more owners and board members
of California corporations can opt out their
company workers’ comp policies under
his bill. Part-owners and directors will be
allowed to waive coverage as long as they
have other health insurance to cover them
in case of accident or illness.
The Legislature’s efforts to reduce cheating
by employers have made it harder on small
business owners, according to Bradford who
represents the 35th District. The California
Department of Insurance says that workers’
comp premium fraud occurs when a company
underreports the true number of employees
on its payroll.
The new law doesn’t take effect until July
1, giving small businesses time to decide
who’ll claim the exemption. The California
Medical Association predicted that owners of
medical practices will sign up immediately
for the waivers.
“All owners of medical corporations will
be able to exempt themselves from workers’
compensation coverage, regardless of
percentage ownership, as long as they submit
a waiver and have health insurance coverage,”
the association said when the bill was
signed on October 30.
Currently, a relative or investor in a corporation
can decline insurance coverage if they
own at least 15 percent of the business. That
same applies to a member of a board of directors.
Bradford’s bill relaxes the requirement
so that owners with a lower 10 percent stake
also may opt out as a cost-saving measure.
The 15-percent rule was “arbitrary” and
left many owners of medical corporations to
pay higher insurance bills for coverage they
didn’t need, according to the state’s medical
association that sponsored Bradford’s bill.
CMA noted that the rule had good intentions.
It was aimed at stopping employers
from handing out phony job titles or small
fractions of a business to avoid coverage
requirements under the work comp system.
The 15 percent rule wound up costing
medical corporations with 10 owners an
additional $11,000 to $18,000 per year, the
CMA estimated.
Bradford, who is chairman of the state
Senate Labor and Industrial Relations Committee,
said that he supports all employers
paying their fair share for coverage. However,
small businesses are being hurt the most.
“This bill balances both goals” of preventing
premium fraud and removing a cost burden
for smaller businesses, Bradford said on his
website. Larger businesses and corporations
would benefit under the change in law.
Bradford’s bill, which Governor Jerry
Brown signed in mid-October, rewrites the
California Labor Code to ease workers’ comp
coverage rules and the definition of who is
an employee. Under the law, all employees
who aren’t exempt must be accounted for in
a policy for workplace accidents, illnesses
and deaths.
An owner or director submits a written
waiver under the penalty of perjury, and
insurers don’t need to verify the information
is true. Bradford says on his website
that he believes the bill safeguards against
more fraud.
Accident insurance rates for all businesses
could fall sooner than mid-year. California
Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has
recommended that workers’ comp insurers
lower their rates by as much as 17 percent.
His office calculates that the base rate for
workplace coverage should be $1.94 per
$100 of payroll. “The continued decreases in
costs to insurers should be passed along to
employers through lower rates,” said Jones,
urging lawmakers to make it automatic. “The
law does not require this currently.”
The state’s elected commissioner advises
the insurance industry on what to charge the
employers, but can’t force them to follow his
recommendation. Insurers and their policyholders
are seeing lower costs for medical
care, which Jones attributes to changes in the
law going back to 2012. As a result, claims
are being settled more quickly, he reported
in late October.
Investigators with the Department of Insurance
have cracked down on employers who
hide their actual number of employees, while
the Division of Workers’ Compensation has
begun to suspend doctors who are convicted
of billing fraud or other crimes. Doctors
kicked out of the work comp system cannot
treat injured workers or continue to bill their
employers for ongoing care.
Fraud in California costs the workers’
compensation system between $1 billion to
$3 billion per year, according to the Department
of Insurance. •
Make Any Cruise Smooth Sailing
(BPT) - When it comes to a dream cruise,
everyone has their own idea of the ideal
vacation. The beautiful ocean waves breaking
against the bow beneath you, the warm
breeze blowing against your hair and the
lure of new, unexplored destinations off in
the distance. If you’re lucky, maybe your
dream vacation is already in the works and
you’re eagerly counting down the days until
it’s time to board. And if you’re still in the
dreaming phases of your perfect cruise,
you realize that dreaming of your vacation
is almost as much fun as living it... almost.
No matter where you are in the process,
the perfect cruise is more than just picking
your dream destination; there are plenty of
other things to consider as well. Whether a
minor or monumental task, these tips are
your starting point. Satisfy each of these
considerations and you’ll be on your way to
making your cruise everything you dreamed
it could be.
Look for the Best Deal
If you could enjoy the same amazing cruise
at a fraction of the price, why wouldn’t you?
Deals are not hard to come by in the cruise
industry and the key is to book early. Do
your research, look for package offers and
book your trip as soon as you can. The wait
may be difficult but an early booking could
save you hundreds of dollars.
Pick the Right Cruise Line
Your dream cruise rests on the right ship,
so don’t leave this choice to chance. MSC
Seaside is a sun-lover’s paradise with plenty
of outdoor space to take in the Caribbean
sunshine and stunning views, thanks to its
unique outdoor, ocean level promenade.
When you step inside for a bite to eat, you’ll
discover MSC Seaside is home to celebrity
chef Roy Yamaguchi’s first restaurant at sea.
Pack Smart and
Know What’s Included
Your cruise line is your home away from
home for the duration of your trip, but that
doesn’t mean you have to bring home with
you.
Plan Activities for the
Whole Family
While the cruise itself is enjoyable, it’s the
activities you take part in while on the ship
that truly make your vacation unforgettable.
Look for a cruise that offers activities for
your entire family. MSC Seaside, for example,
features the most interactive water park at
sea with slide boarding technology, two of
the longest zip lines at sea, a 4D cinema and
two Formula 1 racing simulators.
Arrive Early
Weeks and months of planning using the
tips above could be all for naught if you
don’t heed this last piece of advice. After
all, flights can be delayed or cars can break
down and if such a thing should happen to
you, planning a little extra time into your
schedule ensures that when the ship does
leave, you’re on it, no matter what happened
on the road to get there.
Your dream vacation is waiting for you. If
you’re in the planning stage for your cruise,
applying the tips above can help you finalize
your strategy and finally get on the ship.
To get started on planning your cruise,
visit www.msccruises.com. •
Shoplifters from front page
neighborhoods.
“Suspects know we shop during the
holidays and usually have more valuables in
our homes at this time. We encourage our
community to always lock their doors and
windows, use their alarm systems, have a
working camera system and most importantly
if you see something, say something,” Zins
advises
Shoplifters describe getting a rush or
a “high’ feeling every time they pilfer
from a store and leave without paying for
merchandise, the National Association for
the Prevention of Shoplifting says on its
web site. “Many shoplifters will tell you
that this high is their true reward, rather
than the merchandise itself” the group says.
The great majority of retail thieves aren’t
professionals or shoplifting crews that have
begun to plague the area, according to experts.
In fact, 97 percent of shoplifters steal because
of social pressure or for personal reasons.
The other 3 percent are professional criminals
who sell stolen merchandise or trade it.
Interestingly, non-professional thieves don’t
commit other types of crimes other than
stealing, the NASP says. They’re typically
non-violent and sometimes they even make a
purchase in the store where they’re shoplifting,
theft-prevention experts report.
The next time you’re in a department store,
look around for the nearest 10 people because
one of them is stealing. That is based on
industry estimates that one in 11 people who
frequent stores and malls shoplift. Employee
theft is a problem for stores, too, which is
why stores are spending more on video
surveillance and other technology to lower
the dollar-value of pilfered merchandise.
Organized retail criminal gangs, known as
ORCs, are harder to stop and more dangerous
for store security-team members, according
to the National Retail Federation. Criminal
enterprises in Los Angeles County recently
have begun targeting cell-phone stores, where
members grab as much as $60,000 in new
phones before leaving.
“These are not ordinary thieves,
opportunists or people making bad choices,”
Jerry Biggs, Walgreens’ ORC division
director, says. “We’re talking about criminals
engaged in human trafficking, drugs and
terrorism. They’re committing retail crime
to fund another illicit activity.”
The national retail organization estimates
that organized retail crime is a $30 billion
nationwide activity. Gangs target specific
products, such as baby formula, cosmetics,
over-the-counter drugs, DVDs, and expensive
items. The Los Angeles Police Department
formed a special unit in 2007 in response
to these retail-theft networks.
These criminal networks send in “boosters”
who use a variety of tricks to conceal stolen
items, including belts worn under clothing
or shopping bags with hidden compartments.
Douglass
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Usually, a getaway driver is parked nearby
often in a car with paper license plates,
according to law enforcement.
Thirty-four states have come down hard
in recent years on ORCs, adding offenses
to their penal codes for members of these
retail-theft crews. California is the only West
Coast state not to have an ORC statute.
Prop. 47 required that non-violent
crimes that were felonies before 2015
require misdemeanor sentencing, including
shoplifting and grand theft where the value
of the stolen goods didn’t exceed $950. The
same dollar threshold applies to receiving
stolen property, forgery, fraud and passing
a bad check.
Experts and psychologists who’ve studied
the behavior by shoplifters report that most
adults who steal started as teenagers. Because
shoplifters are hard to spot, stores train their
employees to greet customers and ask if they
need any help. A friendly offer of assistance
is a deterrent to shoplifters, according to
loss-prevention experts.
U.S. retailers lose $13 billion each year
to theft, which includes employee theft. In
California, the number of shoplifting arrests
has increased five of the last six years,
according to the state attorney general’s
office. •