Cut recommended in workers' comp rates

The National Council on Compensation Insurance has filed documents with the Louisiana Department of Insurance recommending cuts that would result in an average overall 5.1 percent reduction in workers’ compensation rates for Louisiana employers.

The NCCI says Louisiana businesses should pay lower rates because workers’ compensation claims declined in 2011. Employers statewide saw noticeably lighter losses in 2010 and 2011. If adopted by the Department of Insurance, the lower rates would take effect May 14, 2014.

“Louisiana’s employers are to be commended for making workplace safety a priority,” said LWC Executive Director Curt Eysink. “The implementation of medical treatment guidelines in 2011 has improved and hastened treatment injured workers receive while saving employers millions of dollars in court costs and legal fees.”

The NCCI attributed Louisiana’s 2010 and 2011 improvements to a decrease in the number of workplace injuries and a reduction in the average cost per claim. The NCCI’s recommended cuts would reduce workers’ compensation rates by 5.1 percent overall, and as follows in these industry groups:

Manufacturing - 6.7 percent
Contracting - 5.0 percent
Office and clerical - 6.1 percent
Goods and services - 5.7 percent
Miscellaneous - 2.7 percent
In a separate medical study, the NCCI recently reported Louisiana employers saved an average of $2,000 per case in overall workers’ compensation medical coverage from 2010 to 2011. It was the first annual decrease in the 10 years the trade association has been tracking costs.
“Improved outcomes for injured workers and reduced costs for employers are the reasons we implemented medical treatment guidelines, and now the data show they’re starting to pay off,” Eysink said.