California Work Comp rates are being raised by most insurance companies. Business owners are in a position of trying to deal with declining revenues and increasing costs. In many cases, payroll reductions have actually driven the total insurance premium cost down, but the actual rates on the payroll you have left is going up. Once the California economy turns around, and it will turn around, the rate increases insurance companies are getting now will hit you just when your payrolls are rising.

Why are Work Comp Rates going Up in a Down Economy? Pinnacle Actuarial Resources, Inc. has put some thought into the answer to this question, and published it in their Research Brief linked here: “Competition gone awry” (page 4 of the newsletter).

Please post your comments and thoughts as to why Work Comp rates are going up, and more importantly, what can you do about it?

Chris Van Beurden
chrisvb@vanbeurden.com

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Wellpoint, parent company of Anthem / Blue Cross has warned its individual policy holders that their rates may go up 39%, but the majority of their policy holders will have a 24% rate increase. They advise this is due to claims dollars paid out are higher than premiums brought in, among other reasons.

It appears that real health insurance reform is not going to happen anytime soon. With the recent election of the Republican senator in Massachusetts, the Democratic majority was ended. While many Americans did not like the direction that Health reform was going, I am concerned that reform will now take a back seat to other, also very important, priorities. America needs health insurance reform. Unless we collectively make changes, we will continue to see rate increases that Americans simply cannot continue to pay.

If you have an individual health insurance policy, be sure to contact your health insurance broker to review your specific needs. A broker can provide guidance, information and a variety of insurance companies with different plans and premiums.

Chris Van Beurden
chrisvb@vanbeurden.com

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