State Fund: A Stable Provider and a Vital Asset

You may have heard the news that State Fund President and CEO Janet D. Frank has announced her resignation and will be leaving on October 23, 2009. Jan’s decision to leave is a personal one prompted by a serious illness in her family. Two years ago Jan came to State Fund and under her leadership, the organization has achieved great progress in becoming a stronger, more transparent, and customer-focused organization.

Jan has also established an exceptional executive team. State Fund is fortunate to have such a strong foundation and positive momentum in place for the future. Our Board of Directors is beginning a search for a new president and CEO and will appoint a leader on an interim basis at its next meeting on October 21.

Despite the significant economic challenges facing California, State Fund is financially strong and maintains an open-door policy of serving businesses across all industries. We will continue working to achieve our goals of providing gold-standard service to you and your clients and making it easier to do business with us. We welcome your comments and suggestions on how we can continue to deliver exactly what you need.

Employer Education Series

This fall we are hosting a full range of Employer Education Series seminars throughout the state. These free workshops are an excellent way for you and your clients to gain knowledge about a wide range of issues—including workers’ compensation and safety concerns—that affect California employers.

A typical seminar features State Fund workers’ compensation specialists as well as experts from organizations such as Cal/OSHA Consultation Service, California Highway Patrol (CHP), and Department of Health Services. In some locations, we are featuring a seminar called “Enhanced Driving Strategies.” We’ve partnered with the CHP in a presentation designed to improve defensive driving skills and driver safety programs for your clients and their employees.

For more information on the Employer Education Series, or to register for a free seminar, go to the seminars page. We hope to see you and your clients at an upcoming seminar.

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Combating Medical Cost Drivers: The Insurance Commissioner’s Plan, and Our Response

As you know, the California workers’ compensation market has entered a challenging environment following years of declining rates. The primary system cost driver is medical inflation. Medical treatment costs have seen an annual increase of 16 percent for the past three years, according to a recent WCIRB report. Recently, California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner has taken aim at medical cost drivers, releasing an outline for making the workers’ compensation system more cost-efficient.

The commissioner issued 27 recommendations on how carriers can apply measures to contain medical costs. State Fund agrees with almost all of the commissioner’s proposals, and in fact, we had implemented many of them in previous years. Here are three major strategies that Poizner identified and that State Fund already has in place:

• Medical provider networks (MPNs) that focus on occupational health. The State Fund MPN is made up of select providers statewide from the Kaiser and Anthem Blue Cross networks. These providers have expertise in occupational health and workers’ compensation insurance and offer a wide spectrum of specialties, ensuring prompt, effective treatment for injured employees.
• Pharmacy benefit management (PBM) programs with a drug formulary. State Fund’s PBM program, Express Scripts, uses network pharmacies to provide prescription medication to injured employees, improving both efficiency and medical outcomes.
  
• Return to work programs and loss-prevention services. State Fund has dedicated Return to Work (RTW) consultants that can assist employers with coordinating modified or alternative work for injured employees. We also offer loss control services and safety programs tailored to meet the needs of each industry.

The commissioner’s recommendations have generated much discussion on the important issue of medical cost containment. State Fund is continuously evaluating our cost-containment measures and always available to share our expertise. We look forward to collaborating on and contributing to ways to improve California’s workers’ compensation market.

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A Is for Audit: State Fund Earns Superior Grade in WCIRB Test Audit

Thanks to outstanding test audit results, State Fund was recently awarded the equivalent of an “A” grade by the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB).

The WCIRB carries out test audits on randomly selected policies in order to evaluate each carrier’s audit performance. When the WCIRB finds a higher-than-expected audit error rate, it may sanction that carrier with penalties and more test audits. In State Fund’s case, however, the WCIRB rated our test audit results over the past year so highly that it awarded us a two-year exemption from the test audit program.

Audit Quality Makes a Difference

Your clients are routinely subject to a year-end premium audit to verify exact payroll and classification information. State Fund has committed significant resources to ensure that our audit function is highly accurate and in compliance with industry regulations. The recent exceptional test results underscore the professionalism of our audit staff.

State Fund’s team of experienced field auditors understands your clients’ businesses. We also have audit reviewers who check each audit for accuracy, providing an extra layer of assurance that other carriers may lack. All of this expertise results in more timely and accurate year-end audits, which, in turn, helps ensure that experience modifications for your clients are correct and generated without delay.

Outstanding audit performance is just one of the many ways that State Fund continues to provide you and your clients with high-quality full-service coverage.

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State Offers Return to Work Reimbursement Incentives

It’s not every day that your clients can get something valuable for free, but the state Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) is offering just that. With the DWC’s new Bring ’em Back campaign, employers can get reimbursement of up to $2500 for purchases made to modify a workplace and return injured employees to work.

Studies have shown that returning injured employees to work can expedite their recovery as well as reduce claims costs and improve productivity. With the Bring ’em Back program available to cover modification expenses, your clients have even more reason to return their injured employees to work as soon as medically feasible.

Here are some essential program details for you to share with your clients:

• Who is eligible: Employers with fewer than 50 employees and a workplace injury occurring after July 1, 2004.
• Available reimbursement: Up to $1250 for workplace modifications for temporarily disabled employees; up to $2500 for modifications for permanently disabled employees.
• Qualifying expenses: Worksite modifications, equipment, furniture, and tools needed to accommodate an employee's restrictions.
  

Be sure to tell your clients about this new return to work opportunity. The DWC’s Bring ’em Back page has more information, including the simple form and requirements for clients to apply for reimbursement.

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Fast Track: Renewal Policies Now Accessible in 2 to 3 Days

As of September 1, your clients’ renewed policies have been available in State Fund Online within just a few days of your renewal confirmation. This faster turnaround makes it easier for you to request certificates and check details for the renewed policy—even for renewals confirmed in advance of the actual renewal date.

You can help expedite renewal processing by letting your State Fund underwriter know as soon as you have received the renewal commitment from your client. Within about two to three business days of your notification to State Fund, the renewal policy should be showing in State Fund Online, where you can request certificates, including those with waivers. As part of this effort to provide you with faster, better service, we are also producing your clients’ renewal declaration pages and endorsements more quickly than before.

We hope that these enhancements will make doing business with State Fund easier for you and your clients.

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Group Lookup: A Convenient Online Resource for Group Insurance

State Fund Online’s Group Lookup tool is your one-stop source for information about State Fund group insurance partners. With Group Lookup, you can easily research and identify group programs that might be a good match for your clients.

As you know, State Fund group insurance offers numerous returns. Your clients can get such benefits as a 6 percent premium discount and targeted safety services, while you may be eligible to earn an enhanced group commission. With the convenience of Group Lookup, it’s worth your time to explore group opportunities for all your clients.

Group Lookup is accessible via the Policy menu of your State Fund Online Welcome page. You can search by trade association or group name or by classification code. Your search results will direct you to association membership information and eligibility requirements.

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State Fund’s Research and Development Unit: Analyzing the Way to a Safer Workplace

State Fund is widely recognized in the insurance industry for leadership in occupational safety and health. As one example of our commitment to studying and implementing best practices in workplace safety, our organization includes a unit for research and policy development of safety issues.

The Research and Policy Development unit is made up of experienced professionals who hold advanced degrees and safety certifications. Their work provides technical analysis to State Fund’s Safety and Health Services department and contributes to our safety and loss control programs. Among their areas of specialty:

• Planning. The unit forecasts industry and employment trends to help State Fund plan for future safety products and services.
• Young workers. To help develop strategies to keep young workers safe, the Research and Policy Development unit works as a contributing member of the California Partnership for Young Worker Health.
• Workplace deaths. Through analysis of national data and trends, we can better understand and prevent occupational fatality claims for State Fund policyholders.
• Special projects. The unit tracks emerging health issues such as pandemic flu, nanotechnology, and MRSA (staph) infection.

The unparalleled expertise of our Safety and Health Services team, including the Research and Policy Development unit, is built into every State Fund policy. Their dedication and skill sets ultimately help your clients manage safer workplaces and better control claims costs.

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