Alaska Passes Comprehensive WC Reform

June 14, 2024

Alaska Passes Comprehensive WC Reforms

  • The Alaska state legislature has passed a comprehensive workers’ compensation reform that expands the support and resources available to injured workers, streamlines administrative processes, and ensures timely benefits.
  • The reform has a return-to-work emphasis along with updated reimbursement rates for required retraining. 
  • Also among the changes is a provision for the Workers’ Compensation Benefits Guaranty Fund to retain its fiscal year-end balance, by guaranteeing that funds are available to make timely payments to injured workers. 
  • Previously, year-end sweeps sent the fund’s balance to the State’s General Fund, often leaving it empty when benefits were needed, according to reports.
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Top Five WC Insurers Have Almost a Third of Market

  • The top five workers’ compensation insurers in the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ latest industry ranking more than 28% of the market share.
  • Those five have an average 5.6% share of the workers’ comp market, as of Dec. 31, 2023, Digital Insurance reported, citing NAIC data.
  • The combined direct premiums written by the top five totaled more than $16 billion, of the industry total $58.36 billion.
  • Travelers Group led the rankings, at $3.87 billion in direct premiums written, followed by Hartford ($3.77 billion), Amtrust ($3.43 billion), Zurich ($2.93 billion), and Chubb ($2.38 billion).
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British Columbia Eases WC Access for Psychological Injuries

  • British Columbia’s Labour ministry has made it easier for people to access workers compensation for psychological injuries caused by work-related trauma from selected occupations.
  • The Canadian province added 11 additional occupations to the mental-health presumption under the Workers Compensation Act, the ministry announced June 10, including: harm-reduction workers, parole officers, probation officers, shelter workers, and transition house workers. 
  • The provincial government first added a mental-health presumption first responders in 2018.The British Columbia Federation of Labour (BCFED) wants the benefit expanded to all workers.
  • “As BC’s unions have pointed out, every worker could potentially be exposed to a traumatic event or events and sustain a psychological injury. And there’s no good reason to make them jump through extra hoops to get the support they deserve,” said Sussanne Skidmore, BCFED president.
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