SIIA Phoenix: Richard Pimentel Highlights Workers’ Comp Line-Up
SIIA has unveiled an impressive line-up of Workers’ Comp sessions and speakers for its upcoming National Conference & Expo, scheduled for October 5-8, 2008 at the beautiful J.W. Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa in Phoenix. Headlining this dedicated educational track is Richard Pimentel, widely considered to be the top consultant and speaker in the entire country on issues of interest to Workers’ Compensation self-insurers. Mr. Pimentel will be presenting not just one, but two extended presentations during the conference. One presentation will deal with how changes to the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) will impact Workers’ Compensation programs. The other session will discuss how employers should prepare their Workers’ Compensation programs for the wave of military Reserve and National Guard. These are two truly cutting-edge topics that you will not hear addressed anywhere else, and certainly not with this caliber of presenter. In fact, Mr. Pimentel is such an interesting person that a movie was made about his life as an advocate for the rights for individuals with disabilities. SIIA will be screening the movie, The Music Within, for conference attendees on Wednesday morning (so be sure not to leave early). While Mr. Pimentel’s presentations and movie are likely worth the cost of attending the conference, SIIA is offering much more for Workers’ Compensation self-insurers. Steve Link, president of Midwest Employers Casualty Company and Skip Shewmaker, vice president of marketing for Safety National Casualty Company will team up on a presentation focused at the state of excess and reinsurance market. These two companies are the largest writers of Workers’ Compensation excess insurance, so this is a must-attend session for Workers’ Compensation self-insurers interested in getting a preview of insurance availability and costs for 2009. Fellow Safety National Casualty Company executive Gerald Scott will tackle the important topic of how to evaluate and execute loss portfolio transfers for self-insured Workers’ Compensation groups. Recognizing the importance of subrogation as a tool to help control costs, Leslie Wiernik, immediate past president of the National Association of Subrogation Professionals, will provide case studies on how Workers’ Compensation self-insurers have successfully employed subrogation strategies effectively. Ms Wiernik will also cover the fundamental concepts of liability and negligence and how they may apply to a Workers’ Compensation claim. Of course, state regulators are important to Workers’ Compensation self-insurers, so SIIA is lining up a panel of regulators with oversight over both individual employers and group self-insured Workers’ Compensation to provide their insights on how they view the role of self-insurance in the marketplace and related issues.
Consistent with previous years, SIIA has scheduled a comprehensive Legislative Update session. One of the main topics to be included in this session is the status of federal health care reform legislation. Now while you likely think federal health care reform legislation has nothing to do with Workers’ Compensation, think again. SIIA is currently tracking multiple bills that could make it more difficult, or impossible for Workers’ Compensation payors to obtain access to an individual’s health records in connection with evaluating Workers’ Compensation claims. We will report on this during the session, so don’t miss it. Once again, SIIA will be bringing you information you will not hear anywhere else. So as you can see, this is very full educational track that provides as much content as most stand-alone “Workers’ Comp” conferences. But for those who are interested in more diverse educational topics, SIIA has this covered with three additional educational tracks focused on self-insured health plans, alternative risk transfer and international self-insurance/ART trends. For companies interested in promoting their products/services to conference attendees, SIIA has various exhibit and sponsorship opportunities available now but they are selling out fast. For exhibiting information please contact Emily Marchbanks at emarchbanks@siia.org. For sponsorship/advertising information, please contact Jaclyn Walker at jwalker@siia.org or by calling 800/851-7789. Finally, the rooms at the host hotel are expected to sell out well in advance, so be sure to register soon to ensure that your lodging preference can be accommodated. Complete conference information can be accessed online at www.siia.org. From your friends at SIIA, we look forward to seeing you in Phoenix.