Bill seeks regulatory OK on return-to-work, safety programs
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An Illinois bill urges employers and insurers to file return-to-work and safety programs with the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission for approval.
Under H.B. 2645, employers could possibly receive lower workers compensation rates if they file safety and return-to-work programs with the commission. The bill was introduced by Rep. William Davis, D-Hazel Crest, in February.
Steve Schneider, Midwest region vice president for the American Insurance Association based in Chicago, testified Wednesday in opposition to the bill in front of the Illinois House’s Labor and Commerce Committee.
“First, there is no documented problem necessitating the so-called voluntary certification program posed by the legislation; second, there is no coordination between plans filed with the IWCC, the (Department of Insurance’s) directives to the (National Council on Compensation Insurance), or the NCCI’s compliance with these directives; third, the real losers from this bureaucratic circus will be insurance customers who will have to wait for these three entities to receive the info, review it, certify it, address any questions, issue directives, comply with those directives and then implement those directives,” Mr. Schneider said in a statement. “There is no need for this plan. It is virtually impossible to implement given its structure and customers will be forced to wait for their insurance plans.”
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