Workers' comp rates may rise

TALLAHASSEE — In a move that will negatively affect Florida businesses, the National Council on Compensation Insurance has proposed an 8.9% increase in workers' compensation insurance rates to regulators, reports the News Service of Florida.

The NCCI, an organization that tracks workers'-compensation information, defended the proposed 2012 increase, saying insurers have seen more claims during the past two years. The NCCI says costs have also increased for insurers because of doctors' ability to dispense drugs to patients receiving workers' compensation.

However, some question the NCCI's justification for the proposed rate hike.

Peter Lohrengel, executive director of the Florida Society of Ambulatory Services Center, says he has not seen an increase in claims for ambulatory care of injured workers. In addition, Paul Anderson, a Tallahassee attorney who represents injured workers, says he has seen a decrease in claims in the North Florida area.

“I would be surprised if claims have grown enough — if at all — to justify increasing the rates,” Anderson says.

Workers' compensation rates increased in 2011 by 7.8% overall, after dropping 64.7% since 2003, when the system was overhauled by lawmakers, the News Service of Florida reports.

Gregg Kaplan, owner of LBK Contractors and Design on Longboat Key and former CEO of cinnamon-roll chain Cinnabon, says if approved, the increase will ultimately hurt consumers because small firms will have to increase prices. Additionally, large corporations cannot adjust prices fast enough and will have to accept losses in income, he says.