Governor O’Malley has signed into law legislation that will convert the Injured Workers’ Insurance Fund (IWIF) to a private, nonprofit insurer of workers compensation, effective October 1, 2013. IWIF currently provides workers compensation insurance to over 21,000 Maryland employers. The company will be renamed the Chesapeake Employers’ Insurance Company.
Although the governor will continue to appoint Chesapeake’s 9-member Board of Directors, the new law will provide important safeguards from state raids on premiums paid by employers. The new legal firewall states that all revenues of Chesapeake will be held in trust for the policyholders, and the state may not borrow or appropriate the revenues for any purpose. While this new protection is welcome, and restates what we thought was current policy, it comes too late to forestall the over $50 million of IWIF revenues that will be transferred to the state in the upcoming fiscal year. For further information contact Ron Wineholt at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
About Ronald W. Wineholt