Oakland, CA – The California Workers’ Compensation Institute (CWCI) has announced that online registration is now open for its 57^th Annual Meeting, which will be held as a virtual meeting on Thursday, March 11 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (Pacific).

Part I of this year’s meeting will focus on economics and research. During this session, keynote speaker Dr. Mark Schniepp, Director of the California Economic Forecast, will provide data and observations on the current and future implications of COVID-19 on the California and the U.S. economies.  CWCI Senior Vice-President of Research Rena David and CWCI President Alex Swedlow will then present the latest Institute research on COVID-19 claims in the California workers’ compensation system, offering a detailed look at claim frequency, medical treatment delivery, and return to work.

Part II of the program will feature insights for 2021, beginning with a joint presentation by Dr. Kurt Hegmann, Chair of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine’s (ACOEM) Practice Guidelines Committee, and Dr. Rupali Das, California Medical Director of Zenith Insurance and UCSF Professor of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, who will discuss the development and implementation of the evolving ACOEM treatment guideline for COVID-19 as well as medical delivery for COVID-19 in workers’ compensation.  CWCI General Counsel Ellen Sims Langille and veteran industry expert Mark Webb will then follow with a review of current legal and political issues in workers’ compensation that public policymakers and the courts are likely to address in 2021.  Claims and compliance experts Debra Russell, Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives for the Schools Insurance Authority workers’ compensation program, and Julie Riddle, Assistant Director of Claim Compliance for The Hartford will wrap up Part II of the program with a discussion of the challenges of claims adjusting in the time of COVID-19.

Preregistration for CWCI’s 57^th Annual Meeting is required.  The virtual program is free to CWCI member company employees, regulators, and the press, and is $110 for all others.  To register, click here.  Log-in instructions will be emailed directly to all registrants after they sign up.  If you have questions, please call CWCI at 510-251-9470 or email pmedrano@www.cwci.org.