Workers
Compensation protects your employees should an injury occur during
the course of employment. Payments are made to the injured party
and can consist of medical payments, loss of wages or therapy.
All
states require all employers to carry Workes' Compensation
insurance and each state has individual laws that must be met.
At the very minimum, Workers' Compensation insurance policies will
cover an employee's medical expenses and reimburse him or her for some
percentage of lost wages.
Almost all states are "open market", which means the coverage
is underwritten by private insurers; and some states are "closed" or "monopolistic" -
the coverage is underwritten by a state-sponsored fund (ND, OH, WA,
WV, WY). In states that are open, rates can vary between insurance
carriers depending on the type of business the carrier is attempting
to attract. In an open market, the rates for workers' compensation
are competitive.
Employers
with one or more employees are subject to the provisions of their states
Disability Benefits Law. This law provides benefits to employees who
may be become disabled because of injuries/sickness off the job or
that may arise from other conditions such as pregnancy. Payments for
these types of benefits are only allocated for the payment of wages...
unlike that of workers’ compensation which provides payment for
medical costs.
Rates
for these policies are dependent on the degree of hazard that each
occupation carries. Each occupation is coded and defined by state laws.
Premiums are determined by the amountof payroll in each occupation
code and is subject to annual audit for verification.