At a time when the costs associated with Workers’ Compensation claims fall but insurance premiums continue to rise, the Illinois General Assembly passed two bills intended to make Workers’ Compensation Insurance more cost effective for employers while continuing to protect injured workers. Governor Rauner has vetoed both bills.
HB 2622 allowed for a State chartered not for profit insurance company to offer competitive Workers’ Compensation Insurance. HB 2525 primarily added oversight to the process of setting Workers’ Compensation premiums so they could be more in line with the recommendations being made by NCCI. As you know, the NCCI recently recommended a 10.9 percent cut in workers’ compensation insurance premiums for 2018. This was the fifth consecutive rate reduction that has been recommended, yet Illinois law does not require compliance with these recommendations. Without this oversight, Workers’ Compensation Insurance carriers are allowed to charge whatever premiums they wish, even if they are not reflective of the costs incurred.
Both bills would have increased competition in the marketplace, providing Employers with cost savings while protecting the rights of injured workers. Governor Rauner vetoed HB 2622 on 08/18/2017 and vetoed HB 2525 on 08/25/2017.
Governor Rauner has pushed back that these bills were not “real reforms,” but that’s only because they were reforms of his multi-billion dollar insurance company cronies. Call your legislators and ask them to stand with Illinois Employers and Workers to override these vetoes.