Ohio Workers’ Comp Administrator Cites Successes, Areas for Improvement

In an overview of his first six months on the job, Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation Administrator/CEO Stephen Buehrer said he has identified three primary areas improvement: reducing medical and indemnity costs that are outpacing national averages; reducing recent increases in the time it takes workers to return to work; and reducing the total length of time spent paying claims, in which Ohio ranks worst in the nation.

To address the root cause of these issues, Buehrer has established five workgroups on Triaging Claims, Medical Management, Drug Utilization, Vocational Rehabilitation and Settlements.

In addition to identifying areas for improvement, Buehrer listed several other accomplishments:

• Saving Ohio employers $65 Million in premiums by reducing average base rates for private employers by 4 percent;
• Saving an additional $80 million by reducing the BWC budget by 12 percent over the last biennium;
• Expanding the safety council rebate program, allowing group-rated employers to receive a 2 percent discount for demonstrating improvements to employee safety;
• Establishing a one-time forgiveness program that waives penalties and interests for first-time offenders of lapsed premium; and
• Emphasizing fraud detection, prevention and prosecution, among businesses, providers and injured workers, and securing 43 indictments and 42 convictions over the last six months.

While pleased with the progress made so far, Buehrer acknowledged that the next six months will provide more opportunities to improve the workers’ comp system. Much of the effort being undertaken to reduce costs and improve care to injured workers can be done internally but larger scale reform is planned, as well.

In the coming months, Buehrer expects to prioritize a list of changes requiring legislative action and is compiling data to help answer questions surrounding issues such as benefits structure, marketplace competition and the appellate process.

Source: Ohio BWC

Topics Workers' Compensation Ohio