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Workers’ comp fraud can’t be left on back burner, law firm argues
Politics
Ruth de Jauregui | Jun 26, 2017
The budget battle in the Illinois Statehouse has allowed workers’ compensation fraud to continue largely unchecked, the law firm Keefe, Campbell, Biery & Associates (KCBA) contends.
The Chicago-based law firm argues that Illinois has failed to provide the manpower and resources to effectively combat fraud, as the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Fraud Unit (WCFU) was reduced to two investigators in 2015 – an inadequate number to investigate the increasing number of complaints. While cases more than tripled that year, from 100 to 331, the unit accomplished only three convictions in 2015 and again in 2016.
KCBA points out that neighboring Ohio prosecuted approximately 132 cases, an average of 11 convictions per month. The American Insurance Association (AIA) agreed with KCBA’s argument.
“We think Illinois should do it tougher and bigger and bolder in pursuing workers’ compensation fraud,” Stephen Scheider, AIA’s Midwest region vice president, told KCBA, the firm said. “There’s certainly a lot more that can be done. When you look at states like Florida and Ohio, obviously they’re doing something right.”