 The Illinois Chamber of Commerce brought its members to the Illinois
Capitol on Tuesday to hear from top legislative leaders on workers'
comp and to pressure rank-and-file lawmakers toward a deal. But
instead, the business leaders got a message on cooperation and
balance.Gov Pat Quinn said he's all in on the idea of revamping
Illinois' workers' comp system. His plan would target some of the
mechanics of how injured workers file claims and who decides the
validity of those claims. Quinn said term limits for the Illinois
Workers' Compensation Commission, and tougher ethical standards are
no-brainers. He said things won't be as easy when it comes to
reworking fees for doctors or proving that an injured worker was
injured in the workplace.
"We cannot allow those who maybe had an injury that didn't
involve the workplace to get compensation for that," the governor
said.
But Doug Whitley, president of the Illinois Chamber of Commerce,
said it is a long way from that to a tougher level of proof business
leaders are crying out for when workers claim a workplace injury.
"In Illinois there is too much of an incentive to pursue a
workers' comp claim as opposed to simple medical relief and
satisfaction," he said.
Whitley said Illinois must get tough and require workers'
compensation claims to be tied directly to workplace accidents.
Senate Republican leader Christine Radogno, R-Lemont, said
there's no agreement on the cause-and-coverage provisions, and that
the focus now is on identifying the problem.
"I've heard some interesting horror stories from business. For
example, someone who is fortunate enough to have their heart attack
at work, as opposed to somewhere else, and so the employer is on the
hook for the whole amount," Radogno said. "Or someone that has
worked at a facility for maybe a week and a half, and comes in and
they need a knee replacement. That couldn't have happened during the
time of that employment."
Quinn said compromise is the only way to deal with complaints
like that, while not taking away from workers who are actually hurt
on the job.
"There will be some pain. There will be some sacrifice," Quinn
said. "But nobody is going to get scalped in our reform. Maybe some
folks will get a haircut, but no one will get scalped."
Quinn's plan has not been introduced as legislation. He did not
answer questions from the chamber audience or the media Tuesday.
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Senate President John Cullerton, D-Chicago, said the key now is
to find middle ground that both sides of the debate can disagree on
the least.
"This is not a Democrat-versus-Republican issue. Let's put it
this way: There are 'no’ votes (on both sides)."
Cullerton said he's hoping to find 30 senators who will vote for
a workers' compensation reform plan. He said he wouldn't guess how
many "yes" votes it might receive right now.
But Cullerton stressed, repeatedly, that compromise will be the
only way something happens on workers' comp this year.
"I just don't think it's a good idea to say anything is a
deal-breaker, because then you cannot get to a compromise,"
Cullerton said.
Radogno also is urging a big-picture approach to this spring's
reforms.
"The one thing I don't want anyone to do, because this is such a
serious problem, is to determine whether or not this process is a
success based on who wins or loses at the Illinois Capitol. We need
a dramatic overhaul of workers' comp."
Cullerton, Radogno and Quinn are taking a wait-and-see approach
to specifics. They expect a proposal to come from the Illinois
House. But when that may be is still anyone's guess.
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By BENJAMIN YOUNT]
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