Sacramento — The Department of Industrial Relations’ Office of Self Insurance Plans (DIR/SIP) today implemented amended regulations that will improve oversight of self insured employers and groups (SIGs). The regulations, which were approved by the Office of Administrative Law and filed with the Secretary of State, require self-insured employers, or their claims administrators, to adopt the same reporting of medical cost containment program expenses as the workers’ compensation insurance carriers.
“These new regulations provide more thorough evaluation of the self insured groups in California,” said Jon Wroten, Office of Self Insurance Plans Chief. “They are also needed to streamline internal operations in our office.”
“These new regulations provide greater scrutiny of the self insured groups in California,” said Jon Wroten, Office of Self Insurance Plans Chief. “They are also needed to streamline internal operations in our office.”
A brief summary of what the regulations amend:
· Changes Certificates of Deposits to allow greater coverage by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)
· Expands the forms used to report wages to include those used by public entities, which will allow consistent data.
· Changes in medical cost containment for consistency with the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California (WCIRB).
· Brings claims file storage regulations up to date with current technology.
· Shares financial and actuarial information on all groups with the Self Insurers Security Fund (SISF)
· Guarantees members of self insurance groups (SIGs) access to financial information.
· SIG Actuarial reports filed earlier.
· SIG now required to file unaudited financials (by March 1); the audited will still be filed by July 1.
· SIG now required to file budget, rates and changes or deviations from rate for each group member, actuarial reports supporting rates and board of director’s action on rates.
Further information and the amended regulations can be found at http://www.dir.ca.gov/sip/siprule.html.
The process of amending the regulation began in October 2010, when DIR posted a notice of rulemaking to Title 8 of the California code of Regulations (sections 15201, 15214, 15251, 15300, 15400.2, 15405, 15430.1, 15478, 15481 and 15484). The rulemaking was part of an overall effort to provide DIR with greater oversight of SIGs and SIPS.
Self Insurance Plans (SIP), a program within the director’s office of the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR), authorizes qualified employers to provide their own coverage for workers’ compensation liabilities. The director of Industrial Relations is responsible for certification of public and private self insured employers, third-party administrative agencies that oversee self insurance programs, and individual claims adjusters. For more information or comments on self insurance, please refer to SIP’s website at www.dir.ca.gov/sip.
Source: CA DIR