BWC Announces $1.5B Rebate

Wednesday, April 25, 2018 | 0

For the fourth time in six years, the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation is poised to approve a $1 billion rebate to policyholders, except this time the bureau is upping the ante by $500 million.

The BWC announced Tuesday that its Board of Directors will hear a proposal today to issue a $1.5 billion rebate, the largest in 20 years. The board is scheduled to vote on the proposal on May 24.

The bureau’s press release included a quote from Gov. John Kasich, an indication that the board’s blessing is just a formality.

“This is another example of how Ohio is using every tool in the box to make our environment for job creation one of the best in the nation, and our workers' compensation system has been a great partner in our efforts,” the governor stated. “We’re up 500,000 private sector jobs and these additional savings in workers' compensation costs will continue to help our businesses grow and succeed.”

The bureau said the rebate equals 85% of the premiums paid for the policy year that ended June 30, 2017, or calendar year 2016 for public employers. 

The BWC said an estimated $48 million would go to schools and $111 million to local governments. 

The BWC distributed $1 billion rebates in 2013, 2014 and 2017. 

As with previous rebates, the BWC is also exploring a “significant investment” in health and safety services. Details will be announced later.