The Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) has announced that the mileage rate that workers’ comp claims administrators pay injured workers for travel related to medical treatment or evaluation of their injuries has increased from 48.5¢ per mile to 50.5¢ per mile. The new rate applies for travel on or after January 1, 2008, regardless of the date of injury. DWC has posted a downloadable mileage-expense form that reflects the new rate on its website (www.dir.ca.gov/dwc/whatsnew.htm).

State law [Labor Code Section 4600 (e)(2)], in conjunction with Government Code Section 19820 and Department of Personnel Administration regulations, requires claims administrators to reimburse injured workers for such expenses at the rate adopted by the Director of the Department of Personnel Administration for non-represented (excluded) state employees, which is tied to the Internal Revenue Service published mileage rate. In a November 27 news release, the IRS announced that as of January 1, 2008, the standard mileage rate would increase to 50.5 cent per business mile driven. The IRS bases the standard mileage rate on an annual study of the fixed and variable costs of operating an automobile.

In a separate notice, DWC announced a 2.7 percent increase in the California workers’ comp Official Medical Fee Schedule reimbursement rate for ambulance services rendered on or after January 1, 2008. The increase conforms with the 2008 ambulance inflation factor set by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The Administrative Director’s order noting the ambulance fee adjustment is posted on the Department of Industrial Relations web site at this location.