West Frankfort mayor looks at pitfalls of workers’ comp

http://www.wsiltv.com/story/35501360/west-frankfort-mayor-looks-at-pitfalls-of-workers-comp

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WEST FRANKFORT, IL (Roni Leforge, WSIL-TV.  Please click on the link for the full story and video.  Here is an excerpt.)

The Illinois Senate could take a vote on some lingering problems related to workers’ compensation in the so-called “grand bargain” budget.

Illinois already has high workers’ compensation claims, prompting Governor Bruce Rauner to push for a change to how claims get evaluated and paid to lower costs on businesses and attract more jobs to the state.

The plan has support from several political leaders like West Frankfort Mayor Tom Jordan, who calls workers’ comp reform a must. Jordan says the city sees workers’ comp claims frequently, and each year the city puts aside $500,000 for those claims.

But rising health care costs and insurance premiums, could wipe that money out, quickly.

“This year, we have paid $310,377 in workers’ compensation claims,” said Mayor Jordan.

That’s only five months into the year, and why he wants to see costs go down.