Latest Workers' Compensation Headlines
All the headlines from our Workers' Compensation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Insider Views on Workers’ Compensation
Jun 4 2018 // There is a lot to like about how the workers’ compensation market is doing. A robust economy is generally favorable for workers’ comp, as growing payroll and investments in workplace safety are helping, says...
People
Jun 4 2018 // Doug Slape has been promoted to second-in-command at the Texas Department of Insurance. Slape has been at the agency since 1988 and has served as deputy commissioner for the Financial Regulation Division the past three...
Report: California Workers’ Comp Direct Written Premiums Fell
Jun 1 2018 // California workers’ compensation covered payroll rose last year, but the average premium rate charged to employers fell 10 percent, so total direct written premium in the system declined by $192 million to $12.77...
WCRI: Work Comp Costs per Claim High, Growing in Louisiana
May 31 2018 // Workers’ compensation total costs per claim in Louisiana were the highest in a recent study of 18 states conducted by Cambridge, Mass.-based Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI), the organization...
New York Board Proposes 11.7% Decrease in Workers’ Comp Rates
May 30 2018 // The New York Compensation Insurance Rating Board (NYCIRB), a non-governmental rate service organization, has proposed an 11.7% decrease in the overall loss cost level in New York State. The change was proposed in its 2018...
California Commissioner: Insurers Pocketing Comp Profits, Not Passing Savings to Employers
May 29 2018 // California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones on Tuesday adopted a revised workers’ compensation insurance advisory pure premium rate by lowering the benchmark to $1.74 per $100 of payroll for workers’ comp. The...
Texas Mutual Names Ward as COO, Haugaard as Sr. VP-Policyholder Services
May 29 2018 // Austin-based workers’ compensation carrier, Texas Mutual Insurance Company, has appointed Jeanette Ward as the company’s new chief operating officer (COO) and Kim Haugaard as its new senior vice president of...
The Lowdown: The Long & Short of Marine Employers Liability Coverage
May 29 2018 // Need to brush up on marine employers liability coverage? Our sponsor, Worldwide Facilities, has prepared a paper on the ins and outs of marine coverage. This paper explains the differences between Longshore and Harbor...
California Workers’ Comp Division Suspends 3 Medical Providers for Fraud
May 24 2018 // The California Division of Workers’ Compensation has suspended three more medical providers from participating in the state’s workers’ comp system, bringing the total number of providers suspended to...
Workers’ Comp Claim Cost Changed Little in Indiana Since Reform Law Took Effect
May 24 2018 // The average total cost per workers’ compensation claim in Indiana was stable in the years since the state enacted workers’ comp system reforms, according to a recent Workers Compensation Research Institute...
California Workers’ Comp Directors and Officers Cleanup Law Takes Effect July 1
May 22 2018 // A new law that enables corporate directors and officers owning at least 10 percent of a business to opt out of workers’ compensation coverage goes into effect on July 1. The law is intended to reduce the threshold of...
WCRI Study: Illinois’ Cost per Workers’ Comp Claim Grew 1-3 Percent Annually
May 22 2018 // The average total cost per workers’ compensation claim in Illinois grew annually between 1 to 3 percent since 2012, according to a recent study by the Workers Compensation Research Institute. The growth was due to...
North Carolina Steps Up Workers’ Comp Fraud Investigations, Fines for No Coverage
May 21 2018 // North Carolina has stepped up its efforts to identify businesses not complying with state workers’ compensation laws which it says has resulted in a significant increase in fines collected compared to the same time...
Minnesota Paid Workers’ Comp Claims Drop by Over 50% in 2 Decades
May 21 2018 // A recent report shows the number of paid workers’ compensation claims in Minnesota fell 54 percent relative to the number of full-time-equivalent (FTE) employees from 1996 to 2016. The 2016 Minnesota Workers’...
Pennsylvania Governor Wolf Vetoes Workers’ Compensation Drug Formulary Bill
May 21 2018 // Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf has vetoed Senate Bill 936, which sought to amend the state’s Workers’ Compensation Act by establishing a formulary, or a list of prescription medications that could be prescribed...
N.J. Manufacturer Faces More Than $435K in Penalties for Workplace Safety Failures
May 21 2018 // New Jersey plastics manufacturer Douglas Stephen Plastics Inc. has been cited for exposing employees to safety and health hazards at its Paterson, N.J., facility. It faces penalties of $435,679. The U.S. Department of...
N.J. Roofing Contractor Cited for Safety Hazards, Could Face $221K in Fines
May 21 2018 // The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited roofing contractor John Prevete Framing LLC for exposing employees to safety hazards while performing residential...
Court Approves Patriot National Bankruptcy, Reorganization
May 21 2018 // The bankruptcy and reorganization plan filed by insurance technology and outsourcing firm Patriot National has been approved and the transition of ownership of the Florida-based company can now move forward. According to a...
Florida: Federal Tax Cuts Spur 1.8% Decrease in Workers’ Comp Rates
May 21 2018 // The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) has approved a 1.8 percent rate decrease for workers’ compensation insurance in Florida. The decrease was filed by the National Council on Compensation Insurance...
California Man Nabbed for Getting Comp from Multiple Insurers While Working
May 21 2018 // Michael Williams, 34, of Daly City, Calif., was arrested on 21 felony counts of insurance fraud and grand theft after allegedly working for multiple employers while collecting over $85,000 in workers’ compensation...
