Latest Workers' Compensation Headlines

All the headlines from our Workers' Compensation Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Medical Payments Per Claim Highest for Workers in La.

Jul 20 2004 // The average payment per claim for the medical care of injured workers in Louisiana was nearly one-third higher than typical of states examined in a study by Cambridge, Mass.-based Workers Compensation Research Institute...

Insurers Warn Over N.Y. Workers’ Comp Rates

Jul 19 2004 // Following last week’s rejection of the industry’s request for a 29.3 percent hike in New York workers compensation rates, insurers have cautioned that the decision could eventually make it tougher for employers...

Florida Senator Bill Nelson Continues to Fly New Missions

Jul 19 2004 // Flying New Missions Bill Nelson As his bio notes, as a child Florida Senator Bill Nelson never imagined that one day he would both catapult into space from a NASA launch site just miles from his grandfather’s...

Big Hammer, Small Nail: Small Contractors and Workers’ Comp

Jul 19 2004 // Some contractors are forgoing coverage altogether and sometimes find themselves shut down by state investigators enforcing rules on proper insurance protection. Small contractors struggling with workers’ compensation...

Four Ways to Slash Clients’ Workers’ Comp Costs Without Touching Rates

Jul 19 2004 // Why value added services are more critical than ever Ask yourself: would you rather have 100 percent of zero or 80 percent of something? That’s the dilemma that we are facing as brokers in a drastically hard market....

One-on-One with Montana State Fund President Laurence Hubbard

Jul 19 2004 // In recent months, Montana lawmakers have been discussing the state’s workers’ comp system, primarily the existence and function of the Montana State Fund. There has been talk of privatizing the Fund, or selling...

Big Hammer, Small Nail: Small Contractors and Workers’ Comp

Jul 19 2004 // Some contractors are forgoing coverage altogether and sometimes find themselves shut down by state investigators enforcing rules on proper insurance protection. A small contractor today struggling with workers’...

Big Hammer, Small Nail: Small Contractors and Workers’ Comp

Jul 19 2004 // Some contractors are forgoing coverage altogether and sometimes find themselves shut down by state investigators enforcing rules on proper insurance protection. Small contractors struggling with workers’ compensation...

Big Hammer, Small Nail: Small Contractors and Workers’ Comp

Jul 19 2004 // Some contractors are forgoing coverage altogether and sometimes find themselves shut down by state investigators enforcing rules on proper insurance protection. Small contractors struggling with workers’ compensation...

AIA SAYS WORK COMP REFORMS PRODUCE AVERAGE 26 PERCENT RATE SHIFT:

Jul 19 2004 // The American Insurance Association (AIA) announced that recently enacted reform legislation passed in 2003 and this past spring has prompted a 26 percent swing in average workers’ compensation rates. A survey...

CALIF. GOV. APPOINTS THREE MEMBERS TO STATE FUND BOARD:

Jul 19 2004 // Calif. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced the appointments of Jeanne Cain, Kent Dagg and Vincent Mudd to the State Compensation Insurance Fund Board. Cain was also named chairwoman by the governor....

WASH. WORKERS’ COMP BENEFITS INCREASE 2.3 PERCENT:

Jul 19 2004 // Workers currently receiving Washington workers’ comp time-loss or pension benefits received a 2.3 percent cost-of-living increase effective July 1. The new maximum monthly benefit is $3,879.40 or 120 percent of the...

WCRI: Fla. Workers’ Comp Medical Payments Per Claim Grow Due to Increasing Costs in Hospital Services

Jul 16 2004 // The average medical payment per workers’ compensation claim in Florida rose significantly in the most recent period studied, in large part due to the increasing costs of hospital services and treatments by physicians...

Decision on N.Y. Workers’ Comp Rates Due Today

Jul 15 2004 // New York workers compensation insurers should find out today whether they will be allowed to raise rates beginning in October. By law, the New York Insurance Department must issue a decision on rates by July 15. The...

N.Y. Rejects 29% Workers’ Comp Rate Increase

Jul 15 2004 // New York Superintendent of Insurance Gregory V. Serio today rejected the filing submitted by the New York Compensation Insurance Rating Board (CIRB) that sought an overall increase of 29.3 percent in workers’...

RIMS: Soft Market Takes Hold as Commercial Premiums Decline 15%

Jul 15 2004 // In the continuing march toward a soft market, most commercial insurance buyers renewed their policies at the same or lower premiums last quarter, according to a survey of corporate risk managers. Data from the survey shows...

Rhode Island’s Beacon Mutual Pursues Expansion Plan

Jul 14 2004 // Beacon Mutual Insurance Co., Rhode Island’s largest workers’ compensation insurance writer that was formed in 1990 as a state fund, is taking steps to write coverage outside of the state. The Warwick company...

WCRI: Pennsylvania Workers’ Comp Medical Costs Per Claim Grow at Double-Digit Rate

Jul 14 2004 // The average medical payment for workers’ compensation claims in Pennsylvania rose nearly 14 percent during the most recent period studied, according to a new study by the Workers Compensation Research Institute...

Fla. DFS Fines Workers’ Comp Carriers, Self-Insured Plans More than $875,000 for Violations

Jul 13 2004 // The Florida Department of Financial Services has fined 31 providers of workers’ compensation coverage a total of more than $875,000 for failing to fully comply with Florida law in administering workers’ comp...

Citations, Fines Issued for Hazards at Ark. Worksite

Jul 13 2004 // An Arkansas utility installation company’s alleged failure to protect employees from trenching and excavation hazards has resulted in proposed penalties of $95,000 from the U.S. Department of Labor’s...