Worker's compensation is a sort of insurance scheme to equip an employee with certain benefits in the event of an unforeseen accident or injury during the period of employment or in the employment premises. This worker's benefit is essential in most states in the United States to protect the interests of employees who are injured while doing their jobs.
Worker's compensation helps to cover several situations in the cases of:
These payments are usually made to avoid any long-term and expensive litigation processes between an employee and a company.
Every state usually has their own laws regarding worker's compensation and employers are expected to comply with them. Most states mandate that every employer should have a proper worker's compensation program in place. The worker's compensation program should also include benefits for dependents of workers who are victims of work-related accidents.
Incepted in the year 1912, the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation (OBWC) is the largest state-operated and second largest worker's compensation insurance provider in the United States with assets under management of over US$29 billion. OBWC has been at the forefront of providing compensation and medical benefits to employees for injuries, deaths and diseases caused at the workplace. The main goal of OBWC is to make life easier for both the employer and the employee by providing compensation to workers without any difficult litigation processes.
At the end of the fiscal year on 30 June 2015, the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation provided worker's compensation to over 253,000 Ohio employers engaged in both the private and public sector. The Board of Directors of the OBWC has the responsibility for strengthening operational transparency and accountability of the bureau, while establishing its administrative policy.
The Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation works towards protecting injured employees because of workplace accidents, while helping to enhance the well being and general health of workers in the state of Ohio. OBWC provides insurance to over two-thirds of the workforce in Ohio. The rest of the workers in Ohio receive insurance coverage different self-insurance programs for stable employers who have the ability to retain financial risks when workers file compensation claims. The injured workers rights govern the policies of the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation, resting on the belief that an injured Ohio worker has the right to have access to high-quality healthcare and compensation from an OBWC-certified healthcare provider.
Worker's compensation in Ohio is made up of two parts - the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation, which is the insurance and administrative part of the overall system and the Industrial Commission of Ohio, which forms the state's claims adjudicative body. The Industrial Commission of Ohio hears and decides compensation claims and issues for workers.
The Ohio worker's compensation program offers an array of different policies for local employers:
With such a wide range of insurance policies and compensation benefits, employees and employers in the state of Ohio will be happy to note that the Ohio worker's compensation program equips them with comprehensive packages in the event of an unfortunate accident or mishap at the workplace. Workers have a myriad of different claims to choose from for their benefit. Workers have a large array of claims to choose from. Some claims include:
These claims cover every aspect of a worker's life, allowing him/her to claim benefits when something goes wrong at the workplace. The Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation offers all workers and employers online updates of claim statuses, while enabling previous records to be accessed easily. This makes it easy to keep track of situations regarding claims and payments.
OBWC's safety, industrial hygiene and ergonomics specialists will visit your workplace to assist your business in developing effective injury and illness prevention strategies. These services are provided at no additional costs and include areas such as industrial safety consultation, construction safety consultation and industrial hygiene consultation. The OBWC will also assist you in understanding the eligibility requirements and will help you in your quest to apply for the Safety Intervention Grants (SIG). The purpose of the Safety Intervention Grant Program is to gather information regarding the effectiveness of safety interventions, so that the results can be shared with employers across the state of Ohio. Training is also provided in a variety of different courses that address industrial safety and hygiene, safety management, construction safety and risk management.
The Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation has worked towards offering quality services to both employers and employees to ensure that everyone is satisfied. Initiatives such as switching to prospective billing, expanding safety programs and improving pharmacy management have made the company a market leader in effectively providing worker's compensation services to employers and employees across the entire state. Updating of infrastructure and deterring frauds has helped the company better utilize its resources to provide better services to the people of Ohio.
The Ohio Bureau Of Workers Compensation has a wide range of medical providers that treat various injuries and diseases. Reports of the treatment provides is also available online. These reports also help providers establish the results of these services, enabling them to offer better quality services over time. OBWC caters to all kinds of worker's compensation needs, making it one of the forefront bodies across the United States excelling in this field. While the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation is located in Columbus in Ohio, the bureau operates 11 other customer service offices across the state and employs over 1900 people across different departments.