Light Snow 35°
Tag:

Workers' Compensation

Politics
NY Law Expands Workers’ Comp For Job-Related Mental Health Crises NY Law Expands Workers’ Comp For Job-Related Mental Health Crises
NY Law Expands Workers’ Comp For Job-Related Mental Health Crises New York is taking a major step toward supporting mental health in the workplace. A bill signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul Friday, Dec. 6, allows employees statewide to file for workers’ compensation for specific types of mental injury caused by extraordinary work-related stress. The crucial protections were previously limited to first responders. “New Yorkers work hard — and those who have experienced the unthinkable while on the job deserve to be treated fairly,” Hochul said. “The mental health crisis our country has experienced since the COVID-19 pandemic is unprecedented, and we need to do …

SHARE

by Michael Mashburn
News
Hudson Valley Man Steals $30K In Workers' Compensation Intended For Late Mother, DA Says Hudson Valley Man Steals $30K In Workers' Compensation Intended For Late Mother, DA Says
Hudson Valley Man Steals $30K In Workers' Compensation Intended For Late Mother, DA Says A Hudson Valley man is among two defendants accused of stealing thousands of dollars in workers’ compensation intended for his late mother. Orange County resident Bryan Dunn, age 51, of Maybrook, and Hunter Diaz, age 26, of Port Richey, Florida, were arraigned on insurance fraud and related charges in Orange County Court on Tuesday, April 16. According to prosecutors, Dunn and Diaz conspired to steal more than $30,000 in workers’ compensation checks that were issued to Dunn’s late mother. The two were arrested following an investigation by the multi-agency Orange County White Collar Crime …

SHARE

by Michael Mashburn
News
Hudson Valley Man Receives $19K In Fraudulent Worker's Comp, DA Says Hudson Valley Man Receives $19K In Fraudulent Worker's Comp, DA Says
Hudson Valley Man Receives $19K In Fraudulent Worker's Comp, DA Says A Verizon Communications employee in the Hudson Valley has been arrested for allegedly filing fraudulent Worker's Compensation claims. Ulster County resident Jason Vega, age 48, of Marlboro, a hamlet of Marlborough, was arrested in Orange County on Thursday, April 13 in the town of Newburgh. According to Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler, between February 2021 and July 2021 in the town of Newburgh, Vega presented medical reports, in support of an application for Workers’ Compensation benefits, which indicated he was unable to perform certain physical functions and movements…

SHARE

by Kathy Reakes
News
Area Contractor Indicted For $2M Workers Comp Fraud, DA Says Area Contractor Indicted For $2M Workers Comp Fraud, DA Says
Area Contractor Indicted For $2M Workers Comp Fraud, DA Says An area contractor has been indicted for allegedly providing false information to obtain required workers' compensation insurance. Rockland County resident Anthony Frascone, age 51, of Congers, and owner of Alpha-Omega, was indicted by a Rockland County grand jury on Friday, Jan. 14, for two counts of grand larceny and insurance fraud, said Rockland County District Attorney Thomas E. Walsh. According to the DA's Office, Frascone was indicted following an investigation by the office's Special Investigation Unit, which found he provided false information to acquire legally required worke…

SHARE

by Kathy Reakes
News
Ex-Doctor From Area Admits To Wire, Health Care Fraud, ID Theft In Scheme To Obtain $876K Ex-Doctor From Area Admits To Wire, Health Care Fraud, ID Theft In Scheme To Obtain $876K
Ex-Doctor From Area Admits To Wire, Health Care Fraud, ID Theft In Scheme To Obtain $876K A convicted felon from the Hudson Valley who previously surrendered his medical license is facing more prison time after posing as a credible orthopedic surgeon and collecting nearly a million dollars to review patient files. Hopewell Junction resident Spyros Panos, a former surgeon who practiced in Poughkeepsie, pleaded guilty to charges of wire fraud, health care fraud, and aggravated identity theft, in connection with a scheme in which he obtained more than $876,000 to review files related to healthcare appeals and Workers Compensation cases.  Panos was previously been convicted of …

SHARE

by Zak Failla
News
Sing Sing Prison Guard Arrested For Falsifying Documents To Get Workers' Comp Sing Sing Prison Guard Arrested For Falsifying Documents To Get Workers' Comp
Sing Sing Prison Guard Arrested For Falsifying Documents To Get Workers' Comp A prison guard at Sing Sing prison in the Hudson Valley was arrested for allegedly falsifying documents to receive thousands of dollars in illegal workers’ compensation. Staten Island resident Darquis Wright, 39, was arraigned in Ossining Town Court this week on nine counts of offering a false instrument for filing after submitting fake medical documentation for more than a year. New York State Inspector General Letizia Tagliafierro said that over the course of 16 months, Wright used the false medical documentation to obtain more than 100 days in Workers’ Compensation leave and more than $1…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
News
Area HS Basketball Coach Placed On Leave After Admitting To Collecting $17K For False Injuries Area HS Basketball Coach Placed On Leave After Admitting To Collecting $17K For False Injuries
Area HS Basketball Coach Placed On Leave After Admitting To Collecting $17K For False Injuries An MTA bus driver who lives in Northern Westchester and who worked as a high school basketball coach in Putnam County admitted to collecting workers comp benefits while still maintaining his job on the court, despite being uninjured. Tyrone Searight, 49, of Peekskill, who coaches in the Haldane Central School District, pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct after he claimed to be injured in 2016, forcing him out of his job as a bus driver. Despite being allegedly injured, Searight was caught by investigators continuing to coach at Haldane, all while collecting nearly $17,000 in workers' compe…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
News
Area Man Accused Of Defrauding State Workers’ Compensation Fund Out Of $33.7K Area Man Accused Of Defrauding State Workers’ Compensation Fund Out Of $33.7K
Area Man Accused Of Defrauding State Workers’ Compensation Fund Out Of $33.7K A 56-year-old man has been accused of defrauding the state workers’ compensation fund out of more than $33,000, police say. Robert Marra, of Crawford in Orange County, falsely reported the extent of his injuries to his doctors and independent medical examiners, according to a collaborative investigation by the NYS Department of Financial Services, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. As a result, Marra was deemed fully disabled and received a total of $33,700 in benefits from the NYS Workers’ Compensation Fund that he was not entitled to, acc…

SHARE

by Valerie Musson
Police & Fire
Monsey Fire Department President Charged With Workers Comp, Medicaid Fraud Monsey Fire Department President Charged With Workers Comp, Medicaid Fraud
Monsey Fire Department President Charged With Workers Comp, Medicaid Fraud A respected Rockland firefighter has been charged with fraudulently collecting more than $100,000 in Workers Compensation and Medicaid payments while employed.  Raphael Ziegler, 41, the Monsey Fire Department president and a former New Hempstead fire inspector, filed for and accepted the monies while out on disability and working outside jobs and running a side taxi business, said state Inspector General Leahy Scott on Thursday in a joint news release with acting Rockland District Attorney Kevin Gilleece. Ziegler, of Monsey, who is currently employed as a Fire Protection Spec…

SHARE

by Kathy Reakes
News
Hudson Valley Physician Arrested For Fraud, Aggravated Identity Theft Hudson Valley Physician Arrested For Fraud, Aggravated Identity Theft
Hudson Valley Physician Arrested For Fraud, Aggravated Identity Theft A disgraced former Hudson Valley doctor is back in hot water after being busted for obtaining more than $750,000 by assuming the identity of a licensed orthopedic surgeon as part of an elaborate scheme. Geoffrey Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York announced the arrest of former physician Spyros Panos - a former orthopedic surgeon from Hopewell Junction who pleaded guilty to stealing millions of dollars from health insurance companies in 2013 - was arrested on Tuesday and is facing new charges for allegedly obtaining more than $860,000 in payments for revi…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Rockland Business Owner, Wife Charged With Fraud After Mercedes Crash Rockland Business Owner, Wife Charged With Fraud After Mercedes Crash
Rockland Business Owner, Wife Charged With Fraud After Mercedes Crash A Rockland business owner and his wife were arrested Friday on charges they defrauded the workers’ compensation system after the wife crashed a client’s new Mercedes SUV while on a joyride and then claimed it was being used as part of her employment. Tammy Pena, 46, of Chestnut Ridge is accused of claiming she crashed the SUV while working at her husband's business, Sam's Professional Window Tinting in Nanuet, but investigators found she had taken the car out for a joy-ride, according to a joint statement by Inspector General Catherine Leahy Scott and Rockland District Attorney Thomas Zugibe…

SHARE

by Kathy Reakes