State Tallies This Year's Progress on Comp

Tuesday, June 19, 2018 | 0

The West Virginia Legislature this year passed, and Gov. Jim Justice signed into law, three measures affecting workers' compensation coverage, the state insurance commissioner reminded stakeholders in a bulletin.

Gov. Jim Justice

Senate Bill 82 provides a rebuttable presumption that some medical conditions are the result of workplace hazards encountered by firefighters.

To qualify, the worker must have been a professional firefighter for at least five years in West Virginia prior to the development of the condition, must not have used tobacco products for at least 10 years and be under age 66, the law reads. The measure took effect June 7 and will expire in 2023 unless extended by the Legislature.

House Bill 4628 drops the 9% surcharge on workers' compensation policies, which has been used to reduce the debt that remained in what is known as the old fund. Before 2006, West Virginia operated a state-managed workers’ compensation system, and the state Workers’ Compensation Commission was the sole provider of workers’ compensation insurance in West Virginia.

The system was privatized in 2006, but the state retained all liabilities incurred before July 1, 2005. Those liabilities were transferred into the old fund. At the time, the old fund’s deficit totaled $2.4 billion, with the coal industry estimated to be responsible for about half of the deficit. The surcharge will stop Dec. 31.

Senate Bill 46 does not mention workers' compensation, but it could indirectly affect medication costs. Like bills considered in a few other states this year, the measure allows pharmacists to inform consumers of lower-cost alternatives, and prohibits pharmacy benefit managers from imposing penalties for doing so.