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Trucking and Transportation Law

CMS to Demand Section 111 Reporting of Funds Set Aside for Future Medicals in Workers’ Compensation Settlements

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is expanding the existing Section 111 reporting process to capture information on all workers’ compensation claims involving Medicare beneficiaries that receive a settlement (i.e., TPOC) and funding for a Workers’ Compensation Medicare Set-Aside (WCMSA), regardless of whether the workers’ compensation settlement was reported to CMS under the […]

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General Legislature Passes Significant Changes to Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Law

By Allen C. Smith, Brooks P. Miller, Julianna Grant, and Austin R. Walsh On September 22, 2023, Senate Bill 452, An Act to Make Various Changes to the Insurance Laws of North Carolina, to Amend the Insurance Rate-Making Laws, and To Revise High School Interscholastic Athletics, was presented to Governor Roy Cooper for signature. Because […]

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Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Maintains $750.00 “Low Dollar” Reporting Threshold

The SMART Act requires CMS to annually review the costs associated with the collection of Medicare conditional payments and set forth a threshold amount applicable to settlements, judgements, awards, or other payments (TPOC amount) for which it will not seek recovery. The threshold amount for 2023 was $750.00. On February 14, 2024, CMS announced the […]

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AB5: A New Standard for Worker Classification – Part 4

by Joe D. Delfino In several of our most recent articles, we discussed the potential impact of AB5 (California Labor Code § 2775); a law passed in California which went into effect on January 1, 2020 and addressed the classification of certain workers as either employees or independent contractors. Since the passage of AB5, there […]

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DOT/FMCSA Noteworthy Updates (Spring 2022)

Allen C. Smith, Austin R. Walsh On 3/1/22, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced a partnership with the American Trucking Association (ATA) to participate in the Biden Administration’s 90-day Trucking Apprenticeship Challenge, which is a part of the Administration’s Trucking Action Plan (TAP). To date, over 100 employers have accepted the Challenge that has resulted […]

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NC Court of Appeals Clarifies Calculation of Underinsured Motorist Coverage

by Austin Walsh On 5/3/22, the North Carolina Court Appeals published its decision in Tutterow v. Hall, et al. and changed the way Underinsured Motorist (UIM) carriers calculate the coverage available for UIM claims.  The holding gives UIM carriers a credit for all liability policies when tendered, not just the first liability policy that offers […]

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500 Weeks of TTD Benefits, Part 2

by Joe D. Delfino In a recent publication, we discussed the issue of what standard the North Carolina Industrial Commission and North Carolina Courts would use to interpret the provision of the North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Act dealing with the 500-week cap on weekly TTD benefits. By way of review, for workers’ compensation claims arising […]

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DOT/FMCSA Noteworthy Updates

Allen C. Smith, Austin R. Walsh On 2/7/22, the FMCSA’s Training Provider Registry went live. The Registry maintains a list of registered training providers and a record of all individuals who have completed entry-level driver training. State agencies will have access to the Registry to verify that commercial driver’s license (CDL) applicants have completed the […]

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N.C. Farm Bureau v. Dana: Bringing Common Sense Back to Underinsured Motorist Law

by Austin R. Walsh North Carolina – On 12/17/21, the NC Supreme Court issued its opinion in North Carolina Farm Bureau Mut. Ins. Co., Inc. v. Dana i, which clarifies the maximum underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage available to claimants regardless of whether the liability coverage was exhausted based on the per-person or per-accident policy limits. […]

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AB5: A New Standard for Worker Classification – Part 3

In several recent articles, we discussed the potential impact of AB5 (now referred to as California Labor Code § 2775). The law went into effect on January 1, 2020, addressing the classification of workers as employees or independent contractors.  Several lawsuits were filed challenging AB5. In one the California Trucking Association filed a lawsuit contending […]

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