Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg (R-MI) and Workforce Protections Subcommittee Chairman Ryan Mackenzie (R-PA) have asked the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to examine hearing loss claims among American longshoremen. The request aims to identify the main causes of hearing loss in this workforce, evaluate how compensation claims are processed, and consider possible changes to federal law that could make the program more effective.
In their letter to Comptroller General Gene L. Dodaro, Walberg and Mackenzie state: “Each year, the maritime industry pays millions of dollars in claim settlements, awards, and litigation costs due to workers’ compensation claims, including those related to hearing loss. However, many employers in the port, marine terminal, and shipbuilding industries contend that a significant portion of the hearing loss claims for which they must provide compensation are not the result of waterfront employment…”
The lawmakers further explain: “Enacted in 1927 and administered by the Department of Labor’s Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP), the Federal Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA) provides for the payment of compensation, medical care, and vocational rehabilitation services to employees disabled from on-the-job injuries… The LHWCA has not been meaningfully updated since 1984, and it differs from other workers’ compensation programs with respect to hearing loss claims. Under current law, employers are generally responsible for hearing loss sustained by their employees due to work-related noise exposure, even if the hearing loss was worsened by pre-existing conditions, prior employment, or the natural aging process.”
They add: “However, under the LHWCA, there is no effective post-exposure or post-employment statute of limitations for filing a claim for this condition… More than 37 percent of hearing loss claims are filed by and paid to claimants who are 70 years of age and older… Given the concerns that these conditions put the onus on taxpayers to bear the costs of hearing loss claims… How many LHWCA claims have been filed annually for the past five years and for what types of injuries, including those related to hearing loss? What are the age and other demographic characteristics of these claimants? … What is the incidence of fraud in LHWCA claims, what steps does OWCP take to ensure that claims are related to workplace injury, and what additional steps, if any, should OWCP take to reduce fraud?”
The lawmakers’ inquiry highlights that a large share of maritime industry compensation expenses stem from worker injury settlements. They also note differences between LHWCA provisions regarding hearing loss compared with other workers’ compensation systems. According to Walberg and Mackenzie’s letter, over one-third of these claims involve individuals aged 70 or older.
The committee seeks data on recent trends in LHWCA filings as well as information about potential fraudulent activity within such claims.
