News and Updates
Month: June 2021
Surety HR: Not Your Average PEO
When we talk to prospects about Surety HR, our self-insured PEO (professional employer organization), we get a lot of very different reactions - confusion, curiosity, blank stares and occasionally – a crossed-arm refusal to hear anything else about it. We knew when we began building our PEO that several employers have a bad taste in their mouth about PEOs, usually after having (or hearing about) a bad experience. That’s one of the many reasons we sought out these opinions to help build our framework based on what employers feel does or does not work. The biggest thing we want to make clear is that we are not our competition. We don’t charge based on a percentage of payroll, baking everything together so that you’ll never really know how much you’re paying for any of our services. When employers are looking for some of the solutions a PEO can provide, they are not always looking to move all their employment-related needs under one umbrella. This is why larger, mature, and sophisticated companies have avoided entering into a PEO relationship. Surety HR is a sister company of Spooner Incorporated – an unrivaled TPA and consulting firm with less than 2% client turnover. Because of this foundation, our focus is more on lowering workers’ comp premiums instead of bundling services that you may not need or want. It also means if and when you decide it’s time to exit the PEO, the process will b
Where is BWC's Group Retro Program Headed?
In our last few blogs and newsletters, we’ve been updating you on the changes we’re noticing in Ohio BWC’s Group Retro program. Initially, there was the withholding of 2018 and 2019 refunds (six total payouts for participating employers). Then, we began noticing the overall degradation of retro refunds. Most recently, we’ve noticed how BWC’s changes to their claim reserve calculations are having a tremendous impact on the performance of Group Retro pools. For those of you who didn’t read our post about reserve calculations, here’s an abridged version: workers’ comp claims have a dollar amount reserved at the onset of a claim (yes, even if you do salary continuation) for additional funds that the insurer thinks it may end up costing. BWC’s method of calculating reserves changed in January 2021 and Spooner’s tracking of these trends show reserves increasing as much as 1900% on some claims. Why does it matter? That pretend money is treated like real money when your experience is calculated for the next year, determining your premiums. That $5000 ankle sprain is now a $29,000 ankle sprain, and the insurer (BWC) will recoup their losses from you accordingly. We’ve been tracking the impact these reserves have on Group Retro, and it shows a vast majority of the pools underperforming. Some competitors even show the possibility of an assessment, meaning that policyholder
Another Successful Open Enrollment for Spooner Medical Administrators
Our MCO, Spooner Medical Administrators, had another successful open enrollment this past May! We realize that marketing can be very cut-throat (and not always transparent) during the short biennial enrollment period, and other MCOs may have offered you the moon to stray from SMAI. Despite what other MCOs and the BWC’s report card might say about SMAI - we continue to have controlled, steady growth and incredible retention. The Spooner family of companies would like to thank the thousands of businesses that chose to retain SMAI as their MCO, and the hundreds of new companies that chose SMAI as their new partner. We look forward to continuing to build our relationships with you and are thankful for our 12th consecutive successful
Learn More About Our MEP 401(k) Program
Want to learn more about The Spooner Risk Control Services, Inc. MEP 401(k)? If your company has thought of offering a retirement plan, but the idea has been sidelined by the (typically) tremendous costs and complications of putting it in place, we'd like to invite you to learn more about our multi-employer plan (MEP). Spooner clients of any size can take advantage of our MEP Retirement Plan Solution for themselves and their employees. Fiduciary support and guidance is provided for you as an employer, and for your employees. Take advantage of Spooner’s economy of scale and save on plan costs and administrative time, plus take advantage of potential tax credits for starting a retirement plan. What is a Multiple Employer 401(k) Plan or MEP? A MEP is an IRS approved 401(k) that allows unaffiliated employers to adopt into a retirement plan sponsored by a third party that bears responsibility for administering the plan (Spooner, in this case). Our MEP is a great way to provide your employees with a retirement plan without the costly price tag for setup, maintenance costs, and fiduciary liabilities. What are the advantages of Spooner’s MEP? It's easy. By joining our MEP, most of your administration work is done by another party. It's inexpensive. The MEP provides large-plan pricing regardless of your company’s size. It provides for your employees. Independent, no-commissions advice to balance your employees’ needs
Safety Council Program Update
Ohio BWC’s Safety Council Rebate Program will remain suspended for the 2021 policy year (7/1/21-6/30/22). While many safety councils are still hosting web-based meetings each month, no rebates will be paid. This means attendance is not mandatory, but Spooner still urges its clients to participate in safety council events to stay educated and use the info to help reduce incidents. • All meetings will continue to be virtual • There will be no semi-annual reports collected in 2021 • BWC will host two virtual statewide safety council meetings • No rebates will be paid While the Safety Council Rebate is unavailable in the coming year, there are other cost-saving programs available through BWC that may be worth exploring. Substance Use Recovery and Workplace Safety Program – A reimbursement program for substance use policy development, training and drug testing (currently available in participating counties but soon to rollout statewide) Better You, Better Ohio! – A health and wellness program where employees can earn incentives Policy Activity Rebate (PAR) - A customizable plan that allows employers to earn a rebate. Employers enrolled in Group Rating, Group Retro, Individual Retro and Deductible program are not eligible for
Why We Fight (For Your Group Retro Refunds)
Many Ohio employers have rejoiced over the big checks issued by Ohio BWC in the last few years, a boast that the state’s strategies that have yielded enough to share dividends with policyholders. While it’s easy to understand the excitement when you’re getting five, six, or even seven figure checks from BWC – we all know there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Many of the businesses gladly cashed those checks not realizing that Ohio BWC wouldn’t be sending checks for refunds earned from the Group Retrospective (retro) program for the 2018 and 2019 policy years. Employers who participate in the Group Retro program are rebated after the policy year ends, based on their group’s actual performance throughout the year. The pool establishes a premium level throughout the policy year - and when the actual losses come in lower than that, the consortium members are rebated their share of the difference. While no vendors were provided with the total that Group Retro refunds would have been for those years, Spooner’s actuarial department estimates that Group Retro refund totals for all participating policyholders during those years would have been as follows: • $190,000,000 for the 2018 policy year • $155,000,000 for the 2019 policy year These projections include what would be all three years of refund payments for each policy year, not just the first y
Surprise, It's OSHA! Dos and Don'ts for Surprise Inspections
Under the new administration, we have already seen a significant difference in approaches compared to the previous ones. Here is a recent example: An employee gets his arm caught in a machine and is hospitalized. Historically, in addition to the standard 5 years of OSHA 300/300A - OSHA would be looking at the machine and requesting the Lock Out/Tag Out (LO/TO) program. Now when OSHA shows up, it may look more like this: They look at the machine, request LO/TO and their written HazCom GHS program, Employee Orientation (onboarding) program, all LO/TO training documentation for Authorized and Affected employees, PPE Hazard Assessments, work instruction/training on machine in question, and Forklift Training Documentation. Is all of this requested material directly related to the incident? Not exactly - but they're going to expect you to supply it, regardless. Having said that, Spooner is encouraging all of our clients to review their OSHA Compliance, which should include all your written programs, sub-elements under those programs, and your facility. If you think you have nothing to worry about, ask yourself this: Once OSHA is in our facility, could we supply all of that requested documentation? Speaking of having OSHA at the door, we get a lot questions (and panicked phone calls) on that subject. To help you navigate that anxiety-inducing situation, here are some basic steps to take if you receive a “surprise” vis
Updates to OSHAs Electronic Submission Requirements
Have you been submitting your 300A online? OSHA has required online submission of the 300A for a few years, and now they’re going to start ensuring companies have been submitting them during inspections. What does the rule require? The new rule, which went into effect Jan. 1, 2017, requires certain employers to electronically submit injury and illness data that they are already required to record on their onsite OSHA Injury and Illness forms. Analysis of this data will enable OSHA to use its enforcement and compliance assistance resources more efficiently. Some of the data will also be posted to the OSHA website. OSHA believes that public disclosure will encourage employers to improve workplace safety and provide valuable information to workers, job seekers, customers, researchers and the general public. Compliance schedule The new reporting requirements: • Establishments with 250 or more employees in industries covered by the recordkeeping regulation must submit information from their 2021 Form 300A by March 2, 2022. • Establishments with 20-249 employees in certain high-risk industries must submit information from their 2021 Form 300A by March 2, 2022. https://www.osha.gov/injuryreporting/ New Enforcement OSHA has set enforcement guidance regarding potential violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) rule requiring electronic submittal of i
TPA Shopping and Ohio BWC Program Enrollment For the Savvy Buyer
Even though the 2021 BWC policy year won’t start until next month (7/1/21), we’re already getting out quotes for 2022 Group Rating and Group Retro programs. It can be hard to feel like a savvy buyer when it comes to workers’ comp in Ohio, but Spooner would like to share some pointers for how to understand the timeline and choose the best partner. If you’re thinking of changing your partner for Group Rating or Group Retro, be sure not to complete the renewal that your current TPA sends this summer. Most employers don’t realize that signing a form and cutting a check in June 2021 will obligate them to stay with their current TPA through June of 2023. Make sure your accounting team is aware of this, too. We’ve seen too many unhappy customers of other TPAs get trapped this way. Are you under the impression that because you’re a member of XYZ Chamber of Commerce, you have to utilize their partner for workers’ comp programs? Not the case. The sponsoring organization frames it that way because there’s money on the table. For example, if you are an XYZ Chamber member (who is partnered with Sedgwick) and you want to leave Sedgwick, XYZ Chamber makes less money. Naturally, they want you to stay with Sedgwick and may even advise you can’t get that discount outside of their partnership. This is patently false. Most TPAs have access to all of the same Group Rating and Group Retro programs for
Continued COVID Guidance: New OSHA ETS, FFCRA Update, Mask Mandates and Re-Entry following Travel
June 2021 OSHA Emergency Temporary Standard More guidance has been issued from OSHA, directed at healthcare industry employers such as hospitals, emergency responders, long term care, etc. The new Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) for Covid-19 went into effect June 10, 2021. You can find a great summary here that also includes a link to the flowchart on OSHA.gov. June 2021 COVID & FFCRA Update The FFCRA was mandatory for many employers until December 31 of 2020. The previous administration extended the paid leave provisions of the FFCRA through March 31, 2021 – however, the extension was no longer mandatory. If employers chose to provide paid leave benefits due to COVID, they were still eligible to receive the tax credit to offset the costs of paying employee leave. Additionally, President Biden extended the FFCRA provisions in the American Rescue Plan Act (“ARPA”) through September 30, 2021. Biden also added some new components of the paid leave, which include: • Additional reasons employees can take paid leave o Time spent in order to get the vaccine o Time from work missed due to complications from the vaccine • The 80 hour limit reset on April 1, 2021 o Meaning if an employee exhausted their Paid Sick Leave before Ma
