HD68 - Review of the Virginia Department of Workers' Compensation

  • Published: 1990
  • Author: Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission
  • Enabling Authority: Appropriation Act - Item 11 (Regular Session, 1985)

Executive Summary:
Item 11 of the 1985 Appropriations Act directed JLARC to plan and initiate a comprehensive performance audit and review of the independent agencies of State government. In 1985, these agencies included the Department of Workers' Compensation (DWC) and the State Corporation Commission.

The first study in the series, a management and organization study of the State Corporation Commission, was reported in 1986. In addition, an analysis of the Crime Victim's Compensation Program, which is administered by the DWC, was issued in 1988. This report, which concludes the series, presents staff findings and recommendations on the Virginia Workers' Compensation Act and the operations of the DWC.

Virginia appears to be in satisfactory condition concerning workers' compensation rates and competition. However, numerous areas exist where changes in statute and DWC management practices would strengthen the workers' compensation system. A more focused vocational rehabilitation effort, more aggressive attention to uninsured employers and the uninsured employer's fund, and DWC organization and management modifications would help ensure that workers' compensation claims and claimants receive necessary attention in a timely and efficient manner.

In their response to the study, the Industrial Commissioners indicated that many of the recommendations in the JLARC report are being addressed and that the DWC is adopting new procedures or improving upon existing procedures in a number of areas. In addition, the General Assembly is considering four legislative actions recommended in the report. SB 126, SB 380, HJR 18, and SJR 55 would: keep the uninsured employer's fund solvent, allow the DWC to be compensated for its activities related to the Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Act, provide for recodification of the Workers' Compensation Act, and initiate further study of private vocational rehabilitation providers in Virginia.