Ohio Workers’ Comp Premiums to Drop 12%

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Workers’ compensation premium rates for Ohio private employers will fall an additional 12 percent beginning July 1.

The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation Board of Directors today approved the cut that will save private employers in the BWC system $163.5 million over this year’s premiums.

BWC Administrator/CEO Sarah Morrison said she attributes the agency’s ability to slow growth in medical inflation, fewer claims, a changing workforce and safer workplaces.

“The 86,000 claims allowed last year were the lowest number of claims in at least 20 years,” said Morrison. “BWC has also increased efforts to promote safe workplaces, and employers are recognizing that investing in safety is good business.”

Morrison noted that from 2010 through 2015, BWC’s Division of Safety & Hygiene saw a 71% increase in the number of employers using its safety programs and services.

BWC’s private employer rates have decreased or remained unchanged every year since 2007, with the last reduction occurring in 2016. Public rates have fallen, too, including a 6.1% cut that took effect Jan. 1, the agency noted.

The actual premium paid by individual private employers depends on multiple factors that include expected future claims costs in their industry, their company’s recent claims history, and their participation in various BWC discount programs.

Click here for “BWC by the Numbers,” a monthly report on the agency’s major financial indicators.

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