Oregon Workers’ Compensation Costs to Drop in 2020

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Oregon businesses will another drop in workers’ compensation costs in 2020.

Employers in the state next year will pay an average of $1.02 per $100 of payroll for workers’ comp, down from $1.11 in 2019, under a proposal by the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services.

That figure covers workers’ comp claims costs, assessments and insurer profit and expenses.

The pure premium rate – the base rate insurers use to determine how much employers must pay for medical claims and lost wages – will drop by an average 8.4 percent, under the proposal.

The pure premium will have declined by 45 percent during the 2013 to 2020 period, according to the department, and this will mark the seventh year in a row that businesses will experience an average decrease in their workers’ comp costs.

The ongoing decline in costs reflects Oregon’s comprehensive approach to managing the system, including efforts by the Workers’ Compensation Division and Oregon OSHA, according to the department.

“The steady decline in workers’ compensation costs is about more than just the numbers,” said Cameron Smith, DCBS director, said in a statement. “It demonstrates the hard work of employers, workers, insurers, and government to maintain essential worker protection programs and robust benefits for injured workers while keeping business costs low.”