Workers Compensation Costs to Drop in Oregon, Sept. 15

Oregon workers’ compensation costs will decrease an average 5.3 percent in 2015, the Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS) announced. The department approved the average decrease in “pure premium,” which is the portion of the premium employers pay insurers to cover anticipated claims costs for job-related injuries and deaths. Workers’ compensation pays injured workers for lost wages and medical care for job-related injuries. Lower average costs in both of those areas are driving down the pure premium for the second-straight year. The decrease is based on a recommendation from the Florida-based National Council on Compensation Insurance Inc. (NCCI), which analyzes industry trends and prepares rate recommendations for the majority of states. Pure premium reflects only a portion of workers’ compensation costs but is the key factor behind annual cost changes. The decrease is an average, so an individual employer may see a larger decrease, no change, or even an increase depending on the employer’s own industry, claims experience, and payroll. Also, pure premium doesn’t take into account the varying expenses and profit of insurance companies. The rate decrease is effective Jan. 1, 2015, but employers will see the changes when they renew their policies in 2015.