By John J. Walsh, MMA President & CEO

Spread Hope, Not COVID

Nearly eight months have passed since our industry, our families and the world were confronted by the health and economic challenges posed by COVID-19. As state and federal officials responded to the pandemic with various actions that included an economic shut down, financial support for businesses and individuals, as well as rules and regulations affecting how we live and operate our businesses, few predicted that the various economic limitations would have lasted this long. I remember sending MMA staff home to work firmly believing that we would all be back by early summer.

Regrettably, COVID-19 remains a serious threat to our society as many states, including Michigan, are witnessing an increase in cases on a daily basis. Based on the information available to me from the Michigan Economic Recovery Council, a group of health professionals and industry leaders with which I am working closely, much of the increase can be attributed to a change in the weather forcing more individuals from outdoor activities to inside where the risk of transmission is greater, and the impact of fatigue on our fellow citizens and their willingness to comply with what seem to be everchanging rules.

By Donna Motley, Vice President of Claims

Do you believe in angels, ghosts or aliens from outer space? If not, is it because you have never seen one? Well, the average person cannot see the little bug causing havoc with the “world”, but we have “proof” it was here, is here and continues to be here! Something we cannot see is changing the way we live and go about our daily activities. Fall weather has arrived and we are fast approaching winter. And we are still under the watchful eye of COVID-19. Some restrictions have been partially lifted but we are a long way from “life as we knew it” prior to March 2020.

The Workers’ Compensation arena has been affected as well. As you may recall, doctor’s offices were closed for a short period, then only saw patients via telemedicine. While telemedicine was instrumental in a patient being able to be evaluated, the visits technically do not qualify as a form of treatment. Without an actual physical examination, doctors appeared to be somewhat reluctant to do more than prescribe the injured worker to “stay the course”. Of all the cases we handled during that time, not one patient was discharged from care via telemedicine. Typically, a medical professional would want a physical exam of the patient before declaring a full recovery and recommending a return to all normal activities. This results in continued lost wages if the injured worker had previously been diagnosed as disabled from working, and the added fee for a return visit.

The current posters that have previously been distributed to you are up to date with the current state and federal requirements. The COVID poster is required until December 31,2020 and due to the potential for that date to be extended or new poster requirements, we have decided to postpone our annual poster mailing until Spring to make sure that the posters meet all requirements. In the event that there is a new requirement, we will send the update to you.

Annual MTM Members Meeting

The Annual MTM Members’ Meeting is held each October. Normally, 150 MTM members attend this event. The last few years, we’ve enjoyed the beautiful facility/room and a great buffet of beef, seafood, and vegetarian meals at The Inn at St. John’s. If the main courses did not fill you, the variety of salads and desserts did.

We’ve always had an interesting speaker as part of the two-hour program. A couple of smaller parts of the program are Chris Doebler, the MTM CFO, and I do a five-minute update on the results of the year to date and first look at the annual member dividend. At the end of the meeting, we have a wide variety of gifts that are drawn at random and given to our members. The MTM Chairman of the Board, Jack Accardo, presides over the member gift giving.

Certificate of Insurance

InsuranceA common request from our members is a Certificate of Insurance. Most often this is requested by a customer of our MTM member. That is a customer of our member is requesting that before they work at the customer’s location, the MTM member provides a Certificate of Insurance. For MTM members who work only at their own shop, a Certificate of Insurance rarely comes up. On the other hand, some of MTM members provide equipment maintenance/ repair/installation at their customer’s location, and this Certificate of Insurance is requested. There are two primary reasons that customers request this from our members.

By Donna Motley, Vice President of Claims

We are all familiar with the proverbial phrase “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade”. Turning a negative into a positive. The power of positive thinking. Lemons into lemonade is good, but, what about when life gives you COVID-19? How can something that has been so impactful or should I say, devastating to our lives and our country have anything “positive” associated with it? We have to adjust and evolve. And we are.

Having to wear a facial mask is now the “norm”. Aside from the health benefits, we are now also turning mask wearing into a fashion statement! You can buy a mask bearing the likeness of your favorite Superhero, Disney character, Sports Team, Flower, etc. You can buy a mask with rhinestones, sequins, beads, lace, fringe, etc. There are special masks made for Brides to wear on their special day! You can even buy a face mask holder/necklace so you can have your mask at your fingertips at any given moment.A global positive was the reduction in air pollution as there were less vehicles on the road. Science magazine reported up to 50% reduction in global seismic noise for the period March thru May, 2020. Amazing!

We have recently updated our website and portal with two new postings to protect automotive service workers from exposure to COVID-19. These postings are available in English and Spanish. If you have questions regarding COVID-19 postings or any required postings please reach out to your loss control representative or contact us at losscontrol@mtmic.com. 

Today, I am reading the Governor’s Executive Order #152. I have read all 152 Executive Orders and want to be as up-to-date as possible when I talk with members. I must say that the Executive Orders are overwhelming, sometimes contradictory and difficult to understand. In my 49+ years in business I have never seen the environment being so fluid and challenging. We have all matured solving business issues, and now our experience and determination is being tested.

In the last three weeks I have visited more than a dozen customers. At each of these meetings information was exchanged, data updated and even a laugh or two. I can report that I left each meeting seeing that our members are doing all they can to keep employees safe and employed, eliminate hurdles and solve problems in the face of the current business environment.

Payroll renewal forms are in the process of being prepared for the January 1, 2021 renewal. While it seems like January is far off in the future, the renewal process begins months ahead of time. Once you receive the renewal form to update your payroll and locations please complete it to the best of your ability and return it to us promptly. If you have questions on completing the form, contact Glenda Moyle at Glenda.Moyle@mtmic.com or (248) 715-0015. 

Each year, we have an election for the MTMIC Board of Directors positions. Once a Director is elected they hold a three year term to serve the policyholders of the company and with that being said, we are preparing for our upcoming election. Ballots will be sent out next month and the Directors that are up for re-election are the following:

• Bobby Cox – President of Acorn Stamping
• Gerald (Jerry) Decker – President of Precision Boring Company
• John Moll – Retired, Gemini Group
• Teena Kowalski, Director of Finance, Repair Clinic 

By Chris Demeter, Senior Loss Control Consultant

While everyone loves to relax and enjoy vacations in the warm climates, someone who has to perform vigorous tasks in the hot environment is at risk. Over the years, I have learned to schedule certain accounts such as heat-treat, metal plating, foundries, and forging operations in the cooler months. Even though I am not in a hotshop for an entire shift, I would prefer not to break out in a sweat and then go to my next account. Heat stress can overcome anyone who does not properly acclimate themselves to the heat or watch for the signs and symptoms that may alert them to possible heat stress disorders. Informing employees of all risk factors and heat stress disorders that they may encounter and how to avoid serious complications can greatly reduce the risk of serious injury or death. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), more than 600 people in the United States die by extreme heat every year. Some people are more at risk of developing a heat-related illness, including adults age 65 and older, those with chronic medical conditions, people who work outside, infants and children and athletes.

Second Quarter 2020 – Who Would Have Guessed?

The changes we have all made in the last 90 days are mind-boggling. We are accustomed to changes in work product and production, so change is a part of our DNA. However, in my last 48 years of being in the insurance industry, I cannot come up with any time with the degree of change as we have had in the last 90 days. When I think back to the February MTM Board and Committee meetings, we were reviewing 2019 results. The discussions were great – how much could the member dividend be? What will the payment disbursement plan look like? A week later, the first week of March, MTM staff produced 923 member dividend checks with the delivery process to start a few days later. After the first week or so of check deliveries shops closed, signs were up, and the news media scared us all. These were not little changes, everything we did changed, business and personal. As time went by, for some one of the most desired personal items was to get a haircut. I can’t remember an anniversary dinner where I treated my lovely bride to a drive through dinner at Taco Bell. For those that are curious, I did not get any brownie points for that fantastic 45th anniversary dinner.

By Travis Halsted, ARM, COSS, Loss Control Consultant

While writing this article, I took a few moments to reflect on the obstacles that the COVID-19 pandemic has provided for our policyholders. 2020 has provided us with one of the most challenging health exposures that most companies will ever face. Words such as social distancing, masks, virus, shutdown and stay at home will never have the same meanings for our country. I have spoken with many of you and have heard how this has affected you on a profound personal and business level. These have been trying times, but I am very pleased that this article will be reaching a much larger percentage of our policyholders than in the last couple of months. I can speak for the entire Loss Control Department when I say that we are thrilled to start policyholder visits again. With the Governor’s last order, employers are faced with several new COVID-19 requirements. These requirements cover topics that include training, screening, facility controls and exposures. One of the major parts of the COVID-19 back to work plan is the development and implementation of a COVID-19 Response Plan and screening protocol. As each of the new requirements can lead to more questions than answers, MTMIC has developed a Best Practices Manual and back to work checklist to assist you with meeting the requirements. The MTMIC Portal has these documents and several other COVID-19 related items available for your use. The next few sections are topics that are covered within the new requirements. 

By Megan Brown, ARM, CWCP, CAWCVice President of Sales & Marketing

We have recently redesigned the MTMIC website to allow for easier navigation as well as an updated look. An area has been added on the Contact Us page so you now have the ability to securely upload any documents that you need to get to us. Of course, this functionality is still available in the Claims section of the portal for uploading claim specific medical documentation. The Resources page has a number of documents that pertain to COVID-19 as well as other State and Federal forms. We have also added a link at the bottom of the website so that at any time you can tell us how we are doing. Click the link “How Are We Doing?” to let us know your thoughts.

The video training section of the MTMIC portal has been enhanced with a brand-new video library. We have over 730 videos with corresponding testing documents in multiple languages that cover topics such as:

• COVID-19
• America With Disabilities Act
• Drug & Alcohol Abuse in the Workplace
• Emergency Preparedness
• Ergonomics: Working from Home
• Workplace Stress: The Basics

The video library has a section announcing new releases and is sorted by the various types of training. At the end of each training, Certificates of Completion are available for your training files. If you do not have access to our portal or have a training that you are looking for, please do not hesitate to contact us at sales@mtmic.com. Check on the new website and/or training videos and let us know what you think.

Did you know that MTM has the ability to provide coverage for your out of state payroll/locations through a partner company? If you have a facility outside the state of Michigan, contact us at sales@mtmic.com to get a quote. 

The last 10 weeks has been most interesting. Years ago, I was in an unusual situation of being able to have dinner with Yogi Berra and two of his sons in New Jersey. It was a couple of evenings of fascinating discussion. After the first dinner, I read up more about Yogi and many of his famous common-sense quotes. One of my favorites was, “It’s tough to make predictions, especially about the future.” It seems to apply so precisely to our last 10 weeks. Even with all the turmoil in life, the focus of MTM as always remains on what can we do to help our members. Let me cover two big items during the last 10 weeks.

By Donna Motley, Vice President of Claims

As we slowly attempt to return to our former lives (I’m not going to say “return to normal” because, let’s face it, I doubt things will ever be what we considered “normal” in the past), there will certainly be challenges that need to be met. MTMIC was fully functional during the “stay safe” order. Challenges were met in making sure injured workers received appropriate care and treatment. Telemedicine and Teletherapy were utilized. Nurse Case Managers were not allowed to attend appointments of those physicians that were continuing to see patients in person, so they would have a follow-up conference with the injured worker and the physician’s office and obtain the required paperwork for our department. However, for the most part, physicians were reluctant to do more than keep the injured worker “status quo” while utilizing Telemedicine. Teletherapy was a little more effective, as the therapist could actually watch and respond to the injured worker while maneuvers were performed. A few injured workers did advise they “preferred” in person therapy and returned (under CDC guidelines) as soon as they were allowed.

With the current changes that we are seeing on a weekly basis, the MTMIC Loss Control staff have put together a Best Work Practices During COVID-19 guide. If you have questions regarding this guide or anything related to COVID-19, please contact us at losscontrol@mtmic.com. 

We are anticipating moving forward with our 2020 Annual Members meeting on October 22, 2020 but will remain flexible as requirements change as a result of COVID-19. MTMIC is pleased to announce that John Walsh, President of the Michigan Manufacturers Association will be our featured speaker this year.

What a crazy time we live in. Everything is different. In just the last two months our personal lives, business lives, and staffing have all changed. Hard to believe that the world was normal just 60 days ago. In January, we were all dealing with “normal” business challenges. In February, the Board reviewed 2019 financials and declared a $4.5 million dividend to MTM member-owners. Dividend check deliveries began Tuesday, March 3rd and 10 days later by Governor’s Executive Order, the process was halted. Like some of you, I have been in business for over 45 years. I’ve seen many ups and downs, yet this business challenge is different.

During this shutdown, MTM is remaining fully functional and here’s what we are doing for our members: