Editorial: Fair deal needed on workers comp

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Updated: June 24, 2011 12:22AM

If the sudden agreement not to talk about workers compensation reform is any indication, negotiators in Springfield might be getting close to a deal.

It’s a deal that Illinois needs to boost its image as an employer-friendly state. But any deal must also be fair to everyone with a stake in the system.

Businesses have long complained that soaring Illinois workers comp costs are chasing jobs out of the state. Unions just as adamantly insist that workers must be protected and treated fairly. Among others with an interest in any rule changes are hospitals, medical professionals, insurance companies, trial lawyers and taxpayers, who indirectly are employers of public workers. It’s a puzzle with a lot of moving pieces.

Gov. Pat Quinn has long expressed concerns about workers compensation costs and had been pushing for legislation to be passed by Easter, a deadline that has come and gone. Now, as the end of the legislative session nears, Quinn needs to make sure a workable deal emerges.

The various plans floated during negotiations last week promise to cut a minimum of $400 million annually out of the $3-billion-a-year system. Ideas under discussion include trimming the fee schedule that dictates what medical providers are paid, freezing annual increases and adjusting rates paid to injured workers.

We hope the final legislation avoids one-size-fits-all medical reimbursements that don’t take into account workers’ special circumstances. We’d also like to see money-saving electronic billing, a fairer arbitration system and better tools to investigate fraud.

If no agreement is reached, alternative bills would dismantle the century-old workers comp system and send injured workers back to circuit courts. Legislators report some support among their ranks for this approach, but it has real downsides. Workers would have a harder time proving their injuries were work-related and would have to wait years for redress. Employers would face virtually unlimited jury verdicts.

Ending the workers compensation system would uproot a century of reforms. Fixing workers comp once and for all is one deal that needs to get done.