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WCIRB Evaluates Governor’s COVID-19 Executive Order Impact on Workers’ Compensation Costs

The Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California (WCIRB) has released its Evaluation of Cost Impact of Governor Newsom’s Executive Order on Rebuttable Presumption for California COVID-19 Workers’ Compensation Claims. In this evaluation, the WCIRB estimated the cost impact of the governor’s May 6, 2020 Executive Order N-62-20 providing for a rebuttable presumption of compensability for all workers directed by their employer to work outside their home applicable for the period of March 19, 2020 to July 5, 2020.

The WCIRB estimates the cost of COVID-19 claims filed by workers subject to the Executive Order ranges from $0.6 billion to $2.0 billion with a mid-range estimate of $1.2 billion. This mid-range estimate comprises 7 percent of the $18.3 billion estimated annual cost of workers’ compensation claims in the system prior to the pandemic.

This cost evaluation differs from the WCIRB’s April evaluation of a potential conclusive presumption in that the Executive Order is limited to an approximate four-month period, two of which have already elapsed, applies to all workers working outside the home at the direction of their employer and reflects a rebuttable rather than conclusive presumption of compensability.

The full study is available in the Research section of the WCIRB website or by clicking the following link:

WCIRB Research Forum Webinar

The WCIRB will host a free webinar to discuss its Evaluation of Cost Impact of Governor Newsom’s Executive Order on Rebuttable Presumption for California COVID-19 Workers’ Compensation Claims. Click on the registration link below to sign up.

WCIRB Evaluates Executive Order Impact on CA Workers’ Comp Costs
Thursday, May 28, 2020, 10:00 – 11:00 AM PT

Presenters:

  • Dave Bellusci, WCIRB Executive Vice President and Chief Actuary
  • Laura Carstensen, WCIRB Vice President, Actuarial Research
  • Tony Milano, WCIRB Vice President, Actuarial Services
  • Julia Zhang, PhD, WCIRB Managing Director, Medical Analytics

REGISTER NOW>

For those unable to attend the live webinar, a recording will be posted in the Research section of the WCIRB website following the event.

May 22, 2020