You can’t out-exercise a bad diet

I saw this little saying this week, and it really hit home. Being an ex-athlete (and I stress the ex part!), I always thought that there was no amount of food that I could consume that I couldn’t overcome by just “working out a little longer”. After all, when I was playing ball in college, they used to force us to consume at least 10,000 calories per day during our heavy workout parts of the year. However, there were a couple of things I didn’t take into consideration:

---First of all, I was 18-21 years old when that happened. My metabolism at 18 years old was running like a car at the Indy 500. My metabolism at 50 is entirely different (now it’s more like a Ford Fiesta!).

---Secondly, we literally worked out 4-6 hours per day, at a very hard rate- probably at a rate that I could never achieve today, mostly because you need to refer back to the first reason (the 50-year-old thing!).

The truth is, after we get out of college, there is never the amount of time or energy to spend on those kinds of workouts. We have to become, for lack of a better term, smarter! Over many, many years, what we put into our bodies basically defines the health we will have as we get older.

Please understand, whatever we eat is totally up to us, and we have nobody to blame but ourselves- for instance, I usually say that I purposefully weighed more than 350 pounds at one time. After all, I never accidentally ate anything in my life! As far as our health, we definitely reap what we sow. However, you can turn that around- starting today!

Make the decision today that whatever you put in your body is something you can live with 10-15 years from now- because that is exactly what will happen!


Have a great week.

Bobby Bland PWCA, CIC
Commercial Risk Service

Commercial Insurance rates are rising, but only gradually

Multiple studies agree that commercial insurance rates are on the upswing. This includes Property, General Liability, Commercial Auto, Umbrella and Worker’s Compensation.

In March, insurance exchange MarketScout reports that commercial insurance rates climbed by 3%, outpacing February’s increase of 2%. Commercial Property and Worker’s Compensation rates led the way with increases of 4%. The results continue to show a slow and steady path toward rate increases in all segments. The combined ratio for 2011 was 107.1, a 4.5% deterioration from the previous year primarily due to catastrophe losses. This means that the carriers are continuing to tap into their reserves to pay current claims, and they must force rates up in order to compensate for it.

To be honest, we have had 9 straight years of decreasing rates in this country, so it was bound start turning the other way. Customers are used to having decreases in annual premiums at renewal, but they need to start getting prepared for some small increases in the next couple of years.

What can you as business owners do about this trend? Here are a few ideas that might still help with your bottom line:

---Don’t give up coverage if premiums go up- that is the natural tendency. However, this doesn’t work in the long run. Think about this- if you take away the insurance on a risk, does the risk change- NO! All that has happened is that you are agreeing to pay the full cost of the risk by not transferring it to the insurance carrier. If a claim happens, you will pay ALL of it!

---Review your current coverage limits with your agent prior to renewal. He (or she) should be doing this anyway, but if they are not, your property values and payroll values may be too high and have just been continued. (If nobody has reviewed your coverage every year with you, call us!).

---If you are having claims problems in a certain area, put an emphasis on why it has happened, and what you can do about it. Many times, claims occur because of a lack of awareness by employees or a lack of attention to details.

---Check you business’ website and see what you are claiming you do that you may not really do. Once again, your agent should be monitoring this as well. Presenting yourself to the insurance marketplace in the best light can help you attract the top insurance carriers, who have the best prices.

We are in a tougher pricing market than we have been in the last 5 years. However, that doesn’t mean that you specifically will have to pay more for your insurance. In a large way, you still have some control over your premiums for your business. Make the most of them!

Bobby Bland PWCA, CIC

Commercial Risk Service

Spring is a good time to make your kitchen “more healthy”

Spring invites a fresh-start mentality. It is a perfect season to clean house, literally and figuratively. This year, incorporate changes in your kitchen that supports a healthier way of eating. How you stock and organize our kitchens can pave the way to eating better.

REMOVE

Make room for better eating opportunities by cleaning out the old/ bad foods. Go through your cupboards, refrigerator and freezer and get rid of anything that is expired, unidentifiable, freezer-burned or stale. Throw away spices that are over 2 years old; they have lost their potency by now. Get rid of unhealthy snacks, soft drinks and sugary cereals. Once you eliminate what’s not helping, you open up your kitchen to healthy options.

REPLENISH

Fill you freezer with frozen vegetables and fruits with no sauces or sugars added. Frozen produce is comparable in nutrition to fresh produce. Fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables are your No. 1 ally for good nutrition. Whole grains have more fiber, mineral and health-protective antioxidants than refined; they will cause a slower rise in blood sugar and help you feel full faster on fewer calories. Branch out and try at least on whole grain you have never tried before. Quinoa and bulgur are especially quick-cooking and easy to use. Spices and dried herbs add flavor to foods, as well as enabling you to cut back on salt without sacrificing taste. The fresher they are, the more antioxidants and healing power they have.

Rearrange

A study in the journal Environment and Behavior found that we are more likely to choose a food if we are visually reminded of it or if it is within easy reach and it looks appealing. So set up a beautiful bowl of fresh fruit front and center in your kitchen and replenish it every few days.


With summer on the way, what better time to redesign and reconsider the way we eat?

Bobby Bland PWCA, CIC
Commercial Risk Service

Older workers bring new risks

Changes in workforce demographics pose real challenges for employers and their workers compensation insurers. The average age of the U.S. workforce is older than it was 20 years ago, and the upward trend is not expected to ease anytime soon. The aging of our workforce clearly affects some industries more than others. But many employers are seeing the trend already and there is very little they can do to reverse it. Baby boomers make up the larger part of the workforce and, due to the financial crisis of 2007-2009; many of them are putting off retirement.


While fears about the higher incidence of injuries for older employees may have been overstated in the past, there is little doubt that older workers present different safety risks than their younger co-workers. Issues such as eyesight and hearing, the ability to lift heavy weights safely, and recovery time after injury all become a bigger concern with older workers. In order to address these risks and keep control of workers comp losses, employers must adapt their safety programs to take more consideration of the needs of older workers. As workers age, tasks that they could complete easily when they were younger become more difficult, and they may need additional help to complete those tasks safely.

Employers seeking to change the way employees perform tasks need to make resources available to evaluate work procedures, and then make the necessary changes to prevent injuries. Making support available is only half the battle, however. Keeping workers healthy so they are less likely to be injured in the first place also should be a key concern. Providing the necessary training to encourage healthy living needs to be carefully thought out and tailored to address the concerns and sensibilities of older workers.

By investing in the right tools and the right techniques, companies should be able to help their workforce and see a return on investment through lower comp claims, as well as getting control of health care costs for your business.

Bobby Bland PWCA, CIC
Commercial Risk Service

Tips for Controlling Worker’s Comp Medical Costs

The National Council on Compensation Insurance, Inc. (NCCI) reports that medical services now represent over 60% of Worker’s Comp claim costs. In the past, indemnity costs, or the disability portion of Worker’s Comp, made up the majority of Worker’s Comp claims.

There are several ways available to help companies contain medical costs. Here are some strategies that work:

1) Workplace Safety

A critical step in a plan to keep medical costs down is concentrating efforts on workplace safety. With large employers retaining big chunks of the worker’s Comp obligations under large deductible plans, they have to redouble their efforts on preventing losses in the first place.

2) Bogus Claims

While establishing a culture of safety is essential to prevent workplace injuries, employers also should be guarding against bogus claims. In recent years as the economy went bad, employers have seen large increases in Worker’s Comp claims- not all of them legitimate- when some workers who feared layoffs or knew they were pending filed claims to secure income after their jobs were lost.

Establishing on-going testing of various job-related physical functions, such as hearing, gives employers a baseline measure they can track and respond to quickly at the first sign of a problem- rather than after a worker has filed a claim.

3) The right hires

Some companies are rehiring, which brings up a third important element in controlling Worker’ Comp costs; avoiding hiring workers who pose high claim risks. One thing that can help; make sure the job description adequately characterizes the demands of the job. Filling jobs with the workers who are best suited psychologically for those positions will help prevent injures; it will also help prevent a myriad of indirect costs associates with a Worker’s Comp claim.

Let’s face it- health costs are going to continue to increase in the current system we have. However, it is up to us to reduce the number of potential claims through creating the correct safety culture, making sure you hire the best people, and not allowing bogus claims to invade you corporate culture.

Bobby Bland PWCA, CIC
Commercial Risk Service

Texas Hospital refuses to hire overweight people

A Texas hospital already facing a lawsuit for discrimination has again made itself the target of intense criticism over its hiring practices. The Citizens Medical Center in Victoria, Texas says it won’t hire anyone considered obese, declaring that applicants must have a body mass index less than 35. Only Michigan and six U.S. cities have laws against weight-related hiring practices, so the policy could be legal- at least for now.


Here’s my question- do you think this business was right to implement this hiring policy? I am certainly not recommending adopting this policy at this time- I think you are just setting yourself up for a lawsuit if you do so. However, I can understand their logic- if you have a BMI over 35, you are considered obese. Obese people are more than twice as likely to need healthcare than a person not overweight, and when an obese person has an ailment; it is usually a much bigger health problem! Theoretically, if we only hired healthy people (and they stayed that way!), our health insurance would be a lot less expensive in the long run.

There are, obviously, many more issues to consider when hiring people for your organization:

• Is this person right for the job?
• What are their qualifications?
• How is their work ethic?
• Are they trustworthy?
• How will they fit in with the rest of the team?
• Will their salary fit what we can afford?

My point is this--- the overall weight of the future employee has not been a major consideration for employers in the past. However, with the information that we have about obesity and it healthcare ramifications, along with the continuous increase in health insurance premiums for small businesses, it’s no wonder that it has become a consideration. I think the Medical Center listed above in Texas has gone a little overboard, but it is a topic that EVERY employer has in the back (if not the front) of their mind these days, and with good cause!

Another thought- let’s find ways to help the employees we have now learn how to live healthier lifestyles.

Have a great week!

Bobby Bland PWCA, CIC
Commercial Risk Service

Oklahoma weighs worker’s comp opt-out bill

A debate in Oklahoma over legislation that would let employers leave the state’s workers compensation system could spill over to other states that are striving to contain insurance costs, sources say. The issue is being led by large, multistate employers that have seen cost savings under Texas’ nonsubscriber system for workers comp, and hope to achieve the same benefits in Oklahoma.


Oklahoma H.B. 2155 and S.B. 1378 would establish an alternative workers comp system that would allow certain employers to exempt themselves from the state system. The plan would require employers opting out to establish a substitute plan- including medical, disability and death benefits for injured workers- that meets Employee Retirement Income Security Act requirements. Only “qualified employers” with 50 or more employees that have exceeded certain thresholds for workers comp losses would be exempted. Those thresholds include an experience modification greater than 1 or total annual incurred claims above $50,000 in one of the last 3 years.

The bottom line here is this- whether you call it Worker’s Comp or an alternative system that protects the injured worker for health, disability and death causes, you will still have costs fairly equal for both. What it really comes down to is reducing your claims and mitigating those claims that you do have. Until that is accomplished, this issue is more of a political football than anything else. Rates are extremely high in Oklahoma, and for good cause. I find the attention to safety, hiring practices, and handling claims in Oklahoma to be very lax compared to businesses in Arkansas. They are not paying attention to details and have given up trying to deal with them in general.

I would assume that if many of the large employers in Oklahoma leave the Worker’s Comp system, the program will get even worse, not better for everyone else. It seems to me that, just like the healthcare system in this country, we are attacking the wrong end of the problem. Why don’t we find ways to reduce and mitigate claims for worker’s instead of trying to change the mechanism that pays for the claims? The situation is the same in Healthcare- why don’t we try to show people how to be healthier and learn to prevent all the health problems instead of trying to change the payer system that supports these health problems?

I guess I would have to be a politician to be able to answer that, wouldn’t I?

Bobby Bland PWCA, CIC
Commercial Risk Service

Melanomas rising, mostly among young women

Planning to head to a tanning salon to beef up your bronze look for prom and graduation, or to get a head start on beach season? Young people might want to reconsider. A dramatic rise in skin cancer rates among young adults is leading health officials to shed light on the risk factors, specifically tanning salons, which women are more likely to use. Women under the age of 40 are hit hardest by the escalating incidence of melanoma, according to a Mayo Clinic study published in the April issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Researchers examined records from a decades-long history in patients 18-39 from 1970 to 2009. Melanoma cases increased eightfold among women in that time and three-fold for men.
“We need to get away from the idea that skin cancer is an older person’s disease,” says report co-author Jerry Brewer, a dermatologist at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.

According to the National Institutes of Health, excess exposure to ultraviolet light increases risk for all skin cancers. UV light is invisible radiation that can damage DNA in the skin and can be generated by the sun, sunlamps and tanning beds. People with fair skin are at higher risk. Fair skin has less pigment to protect the body from UV radiation. Other risk factors include:

---One of more severe sunburns as a child
---An unusual number of moles
---A family history of melanoma
---An exposure to UV light

The possibility of skin cancer might seem remote to young people, but it is not. “The people most affected are not just Baby Boomers but actually young adults,” says Kavita Mariwalla, director of dermatological surgery at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York. Tanning before prom or big events has become a “norm” for many teenagers. What they don’t know is that each time they visit a tanning booth, their risk of skin cancer rises.”

Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We know that ultraviolet radiation is linked to cancer, so avoid exposure to it. The most recent research shows that there is no such thing as a healthy tan.

Please let you employees know about the dangers of the sun’s damaging rays, as well as the increased dangers of tanning beds. Remember, a large part of living a healthy lifestyle is also in the prevention of major diseases, and skin cancer is one of them.


Bobby Bland PWCA, CIC
Commercial Risk Service