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Ohio considers significant workers comp rate reduction

Posted On: Feb. 26, 2016 12:00 AM CST

The Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation will consider a proposal in March to reduce overall average rates for the state's private employers by 8.6% and decrease projected annual premiums by $113 million next year.

The rate reduction, which would result in an average rate for workers comp coverage of $1.07 per $100 of payroll, would take effect for the policy year beginning July 1, 2016, according to the proposal.

If adopted, Ohio's private employers will be paying $463 million less annually than they were at the beginning of 2011, representing a combined 28.2% decrease, bureau Administrator/CEO Steve Buehrer said Thursday in a statement.

“A number of factors are driving our ability to reduce rates, including better-than-projected claims costs, a continued decline in claims frequency and increasing payroll being reported by Ohio companies,” Mr. Buehrer said in the statement. “Every dollar we don't have to collect is another dollar that Ohio's companies can use to invest in growing their business.”

The bureau's board of directors will vote on the proposal during its next meeting, scheduled for March 17.