The Baran Employment Law Bulletin - Summer 2010 - Volume 1, No. 1
June 29, 2010Effective 7/1/10, the Bureau of Workers' Compensation made the following changes in policy and procedure:
a. BWC premium discounts for employees implementing Drug and Alcohol Free Workplace
"policies" will be reduced from 10, 15, and 20% depending upon the program selected to
4 or 7%. Standards for compliance have changed.
b. Per claim deductible program implemented, allowing participating employers to receive an
upfront per claim discount.
c. Mandatory reporting of certain workers' compensation claims to Medicare.
d. Introduction of Experience Modifier (EM) capping to minimize significant premium increases
for penalty rated employers.
e. Salary continuation will no longer suppress a lost time reserve, possibly resulting in
increased premiums.
Recent court decisions:
Kaminski v. Metal Wire Prod. Co., 2010 Ohio 1027 (decided 03123/10). The Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of Ohio's intentional tort statute (R.C. §2745.01). Over the course of the last 25 years, Ohio's legislature has attempted to limit intentional tort litigation by re-defining the definition of the term without success, as prior statutes were held to be unconstitutional. The legislature has finally succeeded in significantly restricting such actions, providing relief to Ohio's employer's with Ohio's latest version of the intentional tort statute.
For further information concerning these topics and others, call John Tarkowsky, OSBA Board Certified Specialist in Workers' Compensation predominantly practicing employment law, at
419-524-6682. Our firm is a Martindale-Hubbell AV rated law firm serving Ohio's employer's
through it's offices in Mansfield, Lima, Toledo and Cleveland.
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