Bureau of Workers Compensation in Ohio

In this article, we will focus on how Workers Compensation in Ohio works. The insurance program is run by the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation, also called the BWC or OBWC. Founded in 1912, the OBWC has been providing medical and other compensation benefits to workers who sustained injuries or contracted illnesses at work.

The OBWC is the largest exclusively state-run Worker’s Compensation bureau in America. It is also the second largest overall provider of such insurance in the entire country. According to the BWC Stats Sheet, the Bureau paid out about $1.64 billion in total benefits in 2015, another $1.6 billion in 2016 and has paid out about $1.4 billion year till date.

Benefits

According to Disability Secrets, a part of the NOLO network, Workers Compensation in Ohio benefits in the Buckeye State include the following:

• Cost of medical treatment

• Compensation for lost wages

• Compensation for temporary disability

• Compensation for permanent injuries

How to Submit a Compensation Claim

• Report your injury or illness to your employer ASAP.

• Complete an FROI or First Report of Injury/ Occupational Disease/ Death form and submit it to the OBWC. These forms can be completed online or you can download a copy of the form.

• The FROI form needs to be completed and submitted within 2 years of the date of your injury.

• The OBWC takes 28 days from the time you submitted the form to give you a decision.

What to do if your Workers Compensation in Ohio Claim is denied

• File an appeal at the Industrial Commission of Ohio in 14 days of your claim’s denial being communicated. It can be done online via the Industrial Commission Online Network or ICON. Or you can download a Notice of Appeal – Form IC-12 and send it to the nearest Industrial Commission Office. You then need receive the date, time and place of your hearing which will be a District Level Hearing.

• The District Level Hearing will take place within 45 days of your appeal. The hearing is presided over by an Officer of the Commission. Prior to this hearing, all documented evidence must be submitted to the Officer. Both parties (you and your employer/insurance company) will present their evidences. A decision will be communicated to you within 7 days of the Hearing

• If the case is still not resolved, the next level of appeal is the Staff Level Hearing. The same process for the appeal application is followed and within 45 days of the application being submitted, you should be given a time, date and place for your Hearing.

• The next stage of appeals is dependent on the Commission. This Commission Level Hearing reviews all the data and then it may or may not grant your appeal. If denied, then you can take the matter to the Ohio state courts.

The appeals process is stressful and can be difficult to navigate without expert advice, so at this stage, a lawyer would be a good idea.