Howard R. Rosenberg
With insurers preparing to establish their own pricing
systems in January 1995, unencumbered by the "minimum rate" requirement
repealed by reform legislation in 1993 (discussed from various perspectives
in the Labor Management Decisions Special Report, Spring 1994), standard
workers' compensation insurance rates continue to fall. A previous anti-fraud
bill effective in 1992, combined with employer and insurer efforts in hazard
reduction, safety training, and loss control, appear to be paying off.
The Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau has issued an amendment to its manual, listing new rates effective October 1, 1994. As shown in the accompanying table, these rates are down smartly from the January 1, 1994, minimums, nearly all of which were already quite a bit lower than those of 1992.
As directed by the state Insurance Commissioner in Ruling No. 285, the new manual rates apply to (a) all new and renewal policies with anniversary dates on or after October 1, 1994, and (b) the unexpired terms of active policies with anniversary dates between January 1 and September 30, 1994. Therefore, between three and twelve months of any one-year policy written in 1994 are subject to the lower rates - for example, three months for a policy written on January 1, six months for one written on April 1, and twelve months for one written on December 1.
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