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Significant Changes for Workers Comp
Another Milestone in the Road to
Privatization
(The following is a news
release from Greg Burton, Executive Director of the newly formed WV "BrickStreet
Mutual Insurance" company) This article and other information about the
major changes that have occurred in the WV Workers Compensation laws can
be found on the WV Workers Compensation website at:
http://www.wvwcc.org/
On Friday, Sept. 2, as part of the closing activities of the West
Virginia Business Summit, Gov. Joe Manchin formally announced that the
new employer’s mutual insurance company being formed to replace the
Workers’ Compensation Commission on Jan. 1, 2006 will be called
BrickStreet Mutual Insurance. Along with the name, he also
presented the new BrickStreet logo for the first time in a public
meeting.
A short video of
the governor making his announcement can be viewed at
http://www.wvwcc.org/newsletter/manchinvideo.htm
BrickStreet is an
appropriate name for the new company for a number of reasons, including:
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The first brick
street in America was laid in Charleston, WV in 1882;
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A single brick
is a symbol of strength and stability;
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Brick
structures are strong, stable and stand the test of time; and
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A single brick
serves as the starting point for building great things
BrickStreet not
only serves as a foundation to reference our strong history and
expertise in workers' compensation, but also shares a vision in which we
are building on our history and the expertise of our workers to build a
strong and dependable future.
As a private sector
company, BrickStreet will:
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Be the 115th
largest employer in West Virginia;
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Be the 15th
largest (according to A.M. Best) writer of workers' compensation
insurance coverage in America;
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Be the second
largest domestic insurance company in West Virginia;
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Be one of the
largest insurance companies of any kind doing business in West
Virginia; and
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Start business
with an estimated $500 million dollars in first-year premiums.
From Jan. 1, 2006
to July 1, 2008, BrickStreet Insurance will be the sole source of
legally required workers' compensation coverage for all employers doing
business in West Virginia.
On July 1, 2008,
West Virginia’s insurance market will open to all private carriers
licensed to do business in West Virginia. BrickStreet will continue to
be the sole source of workers’ compensation coverage for all state
agencies, boards, commissions, and higher education through 2012.
Starting in 2013, these state agencies can purchase coverage from any
insurance carrier.
Benefit levels for
injured workers remain in WV Code and under exclusive state control.
Claim decisions will be reviewable by the Office of Judges, the Board of
Review and the Supreme Court of Appeals as mandated in WV Code.
You can follow the
transition to BrickStreet Insurance by subscribing to Mutual Insights,
an electronic newsletter designed exclusively to provide policyholders
and other interested parties with up-to-date information concerning the
move to the private sector. You can subscribe to Mutual
Insights by clicking on the Mutualization Update box on
the left top of this page.
Gregory A. Burton,
Executive Director
As always, we are available
to discuss any of these matters with you.
Your resource for all of your tax, financial
and business planning matters,
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DAF Associates, Inc.
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Accounting & Tax Professionals
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