Lawrence Postol's Comments Before the U.S. Senate's Employment and Workplace Safety Subcommittee Noted in the Daily Labor Report

On May 9, 2006, Lawrence Postol participated at the Employment and Workplace Safety Subcommittee (of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee) hearing on "'Longshore Harbor Workers' Compensation Act' Time for Reform?" on whether the Act should be changed to prevent abuse and waste in the workers' compensation system for maritime workers. The DLR reported that, under the law, employers of maritime employees such as longshore workers, dockworkers, stevedores, and other harbor workers must purchase longshore workers' compensation insurance covering those employees. The federal maritime workers' compensation system, run by the Labor Department, is distinct from the state-based workers compensation system that covers other, non-maritime employees. Lawsuits about Longshore Act claims have led to a litigation industry that delays compensation for many workers, said Lawrence Postol, a defense attorney with Seyfarth Shaw LLP, a Washington, D.C. law firm. "We have a system that is great for lawyers, who can team up with physicians who profit over treatment, and both make a lot of money."