The state Labor Code, which is the bible of workers compensation, is 1,000 pages long. For related case law, the index alone runs to nearly 2,000 pages, said Edward Woodward, president of the California Workers' Compensation Institute, the research arm of the insurance industry. Some worker advocates believe, however, that the delays are a calculated strategy by insurers to hold on to their money as long as they can, so they can invest it. They also believe insurers use delays to force workers to settle cheaply. I've talked to hundreds of people who say that this is not an unusual practice.
Doctors say the long and difficult workers compensation process can seriously impede recovery.
Many of the workers I see are extremely upset. They feel anger and helplessness, and that adds to the pain. I have been shocked that the system is geared so much to enforcement. It's almost like a police system. Increasingly, doctors are finding themselves caught up in the same web of delays that snares their patients.