Florida Hears 18.6% Workers Comp Rate Hike Bid Today
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has scheduled a hearing today to consider a proposed 18.6 percent workers compensation rate increase.
The proposal made by the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) on behalf of insurers, calls for the 18.6 percent hike to be phased in over two years, with an 8.9 percent increase the first year. If approved, it would apply to the voluntary market for all new and renewal policies starting March 1, 2009.
The rate filing was made as a result of the projected impact the NCCI foresees based on the Oct. 23 Florida Supreme Court opinion in the case of Emma Murray v. Mariner Health Inc. That ruling effectively erased the state's caps on attorney fees that were imposed as a result reforms passed in 2003 (SB 50A) and will enable claimant attorneys to bill for their services on an hourly basis.
The hearing begins at 9 a.m. at The Capitol in the Cabinet Meeting Room.
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