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Data Quality Incentive Programs

The Commissioner of Insurance has approved data quality incentive programs to encourage the accurate and timely reporting of unit statistical data and aggregate financial data. By imposing fines for data errors and late reporting, both programs outlined below, in effect, transfer a portion of the data correction costs from the WCRIB of Massachusetts to those companies responsible for the errors.
(Refer to Circular Letter #1851 dated August 4, 2000.)

Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Data Quality Incentive Program for Unit Statistical Data:

The Data Quality Incentive Program was developed in response to an order of the Commissioner of Insurance to ensure that the unit statistical data is reported promptly and accurately as required by the Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Statistical Plan ("Stat Plan").

The incentive program for unit statistical data applies to reports on policies with an effective date of January 1, 2000, or later, and to all reports required to be submitted to the WCRIB on or after September 1, 2001, regardless of the policy effective date. The Data Quality Incentive Program has been revised for data required to be submitted on or after March 1, 2005.
(Refer to Circular Letter #1956 dated June 15, 2004.)

The WCRIB edits the carriers' unit statistical reports for accuracy and validity based on criteria specified in the Stat Plan. Under this Program, unit statistical reports will be subject to penalties if they are not submitted to and accepted by the WCRIB within the required month. Fines occur each month until the data is accepted. Insurers have on line access to due, delinquent and rejected unit statistical data by the Unit Statistical Tracking System (USTS) found in the Members Area of the WCRIB web site.

This Program applies only to insurers licensed to write workers compensation insurance in Massachusetts. The Program will not apply to Self-Insurance Groups.

For more information on this Program, refer to the Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Statistical Plan, Part I, Unit Statistical Reporting, Section XI, Data Quality Incentive Program.

Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Data Quality Incentive Program for Aggregate Financial Data:

Effective June 30, 2000, the Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Financial Data Call Package became a component of the Statistical Plan.

The Financial Data Call Package specifies dates by which various aggregate financial data calls are due. Under the Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Data Quality Incentive Program For Aggregate Financial Data, companies will be allowed a ten-day grace period for submission of data, and then will be fined for each day that data is overdue. Companies will also be fined for certain basic and actuarial errors.

he Program also provides for a disciplinary fine. If, in any filing the Workers' Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau of Massachusetts makes with the Division of Insurance, it becomes necessary for the Bureau's actuarial staff to adjust, correct, or make allowances for inaccuracies in the data supplied by a carrier or group, the reporting carrier or group shall be subject to a disciplinary fine. The disciplinary fine can also be levied when a reporting carrier or group fails to work with Bureau staff to provide reasonable clarification or correction. Written warning must be provided a reasonable time prior to levying any disciplinary fine upon such entity. For each filing affected by such a deficiency, the disciplinary fine shall be the greater of $5,000 or .05% of the reporting carrier or group's Bureau Standard Earned Premium for every rate filing or potential rate filing impacted by the error. This fine is in addition to any of the other fines accrued under the Data Quality Incentive Program, and not subject to the penalty cap.

In addition to any authority the Commissioner of Insurance already has, the Commissioner may, at his or her discretion, require the Workers' Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau of Massachusetts to impose a fine upon a reporting carrier or group in the amount set forth in the preceding paragraph if, after written notice and a hearing, the Commissioner finds that any reporting entity's aggregate financial data is unreliable, incomplete, untimely or otherwise defective and that such defect has materially impacted a filing submitted to the Commissioner. The Commissioner may not, however, impose such fine if the Workers' Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau of Massachusetts has already imposed any fine for such defect under this Data Quality Incentive Program before the Commissioner issues a notice of hearing for this disciplinary fine. The Workers' Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau of Massachusetts shall provide a list of the fines imposed under this Data Quality Incentive Program when the Workers' Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau of Massachusetts submits each calendar years aggregate financial data to the Director of the State Rating Bureau.

For more information on this Program, refer to the Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Statistical Plan, Part II, Aggregate Financial Reporting, Section IV, Data Quality Incentive Program.

Program Overview

The Workers' Compensation Rating and Inspection Bureau of Massachusetts
101 Arch Street, 5th Floor
Boston, MA 02110