Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation

What Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation does

The Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation (BWC) is a State of Ohio government agency, founded in 1912 and headquartered at 30 W. Spring St., Columbus, OH, that operates as the exclusive state-fund workers' compensation insurer for Ohio's public and private employers. It serves approximately 258,000 covered employers and their injured workers, delivering mandatory workers' compensation insurance, claims administration, medical-care coordination through contracted Managed Care Organizations (e.g., Sheakley UniComp), and a broad suite of safety services including OSHA On-Site Consultation, the Public Employment Risk Reduction Program (PERRP), the Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP), safety training via the BWC Learning Center, and the trademarked Ohio Safety Congress & Expo® annual event. The agency also administers the Workforce Safety Innovation Center® (WSIC) and Safety Grants programs, the new Substance Use Prevention and Recovery Program (SUPR), the Ohio Occupational Safety and Health Research Program, the Kids' Chance Ohio Scholarships, and a dedicated Special Investigations Department (SID) for fraud prevention.

BWC's underlying technology stack is built on the State of Ohio's Innovate Ohio Platform (migrated in 2025) with OHID single sign-on, supporting integrated employer and worker self-service portals (MyPolicy and MyClaim), e-signature and privacy infrastructure, and a third-party Streamery integration for safety video delivery. The agency is governed by an eleven-member Board of Directors chaired by Suzanne R. Kiggin, with executive leadership led by Administrator and CEO Stephanie McCloud (since November 2024) and a deep C-suite including a Chief Actuarial Officer, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Medical Officer, Chief Communications Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Legal Counsel, Interim CIO, and division chiefs.

BWC's revenue model rests on three streams: employer-paid workers' compensation premiums set by its Board of Directors (currently producing Ohio's 5th-lowest premium rates nationwide per a June 2025 Oregon DCBS study), investment income generated by the State Insurance Fund under a Chief Investment Officer, and ancillary revenue from managed-care contracts and Safety Council rebates. Premium rate cuts of 6% for private employers (effective July 1, 2025, ~$60M in employer savings), 1% for public employers (effective Jan. 1, 2026, ~$2M savings), and an additional 1% for private employers (announced Feb. 2026, ~$10M savings) demonstrate the agency's pricing latitude. BWC distributes its services through direct channels (self-service portal, statewide service offices, 1-800 contact center, employer webinars, and on-site safety consultations) plus its MCO partner network.

Name

Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation

Legal name

Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation

Website

https://info.bwc.ohio.gov

Company type

Private

Founded year

1912

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

The Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation is the State of Ohio's exclusive state-fund workers' compensation insurer, providing mandatory insurance, claims administration, and safety services to 258,000 Ohio public and private employers and their injured workers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Workers' Compensation Insurance

NAICS

Insurance and Employee Benefit Funds (5251)

SIC

Accident & Health Insurance (6321)

akta.pro primary industry

Workers’ Compensation Insurance (FSAJAMAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Employers Liability (Part B) (FSAJAEAC), Indemnity (Lost-Time) Workers’ Compensation (FSAJAEAB), Workers’ Compensation & Occupational Health TPA (HLAEALAL), Work Injury & Workers’ Compensation / Occupational Injury Benefits (BPAIAKAJ)

Keywords

• Workers compensation insurance
• Workplace safety services
• Claims administration
• Injury prevention training
• Employer risk management

Headquarters

HQ city

Columbus

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Workers' Compensation Premiums: State-funded insurance premiums paid by Ohio public and private employers (258,000+ covered), collected and administered through the State Insurance Fund; rate levels set periodically by the BWC Board of Directors (e.g., 1% rate cut for public employers saving ~$2M and another 1% rate cut saving private employers ~$10M, plus a 6% private employer rate reduction saving ~$60M).
2. Investment Income (State Insurance Fund): Earnings from the investment portfolio managed by the Office of Investments under the Chief Investment Officer; the Board of Directors has an Investment Committee and supports dedicated investment consulting contracts.
3. Safety Council Rebates / Program Fees: Safety Council program allows Ohio employers to earn financial rebates on premiums in exchange for participation; complementary managed care services are administered through contracted MCOs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

The Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation is the State of Ohio's exclusive state-fund workers' compensation insurer, providing mandatory workers' compensation insurance and claims administration to approximately 258,000 public and private Ohio employers, along with workplace safety consultation, training, and grant programs for injured workers and employers. It collects premiums, processes injury and occupational illness claims, coordinates medical care through contracted managed care organizations, investigates fraud through its Special Investigations Department, and funds safety innovation through the Workforce Safety Innovation Center.

Product overview

The Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation (BWC) operates a single integrated service platform (info.bwc.ohio.gov) that delivers the state's workers' compensation insurance, claims administration, and workplace-safety programs for roughly 258,000 Ohio public and private employers and injured workers. The platform is organized into a core insurance/claims backbone — workers' compensation insurance, claims filing/viewing/appeals, benefits, medical-care/MCO coordination, and self-insured employer support — surrounded by an employer-facing Safety Services module (Consultations and Programs, OSHA Programs including SHARP and OSHA On-Site Consultation, PERRP, Workforce Safety Innovation Center (WSIC), Safety Grants, Safety Councils, and the Ohio Safety Congress & Expo®) plus an extensive training offering (Safety Courses registered through the BWC Learning Center and Safety Videos delivered via the third-party Streamery platform). Specialized programs layered on top include the Substance Use Prevention and Recovery Program (SUPR), the Medical & Health Symposium, the Kids' Chance Ohio Scholarships, Fraud Prevention / Special Investigations, the Ombuds Office, and Research and Reporting (CFOI, SOII, claim-counts dashboards, and the Safety and Health Research Program). Operational governance is run through the BWC Board of Directors and committees (Audit, Actuarial, Investment, Governance, Medical Services & Safety), and policy/legal frameworks are defined by the Ohio Administrative Code (OAC) and Ohio Revised Code (ORC), with supporting Privacy, E-Signature, Signature, and IRS-requirements policies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Ohio Safety Congress & Expo® (OSC): BWC's annual flagship workplace safety conference and expo, described by BWC as the largest free safety and health conference in the country.
• Workforce Safety Innovation Center (WSIC)
• Public Employment Risk Reduction Program (PERRP)
• Ohio Occupational Safety and Health Research Program
• Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP)

Products and services

• Workers' Compensation Insurance & Claims Administration The agency's core offering: state-funded workers' compensation insurance and end-to-end claims administration for Ohio's public and private employers and injured workers, including applying for coverage, filing claims, viewing claim information via the OHID-authenticated MyClaim portal, appealing claim decisions through the Ohio Industrial Commission's I.C.O.N system, and remitting premium payments.
• Public Employment Risk Reduction Program (PERRP) Ohio's program promoting workplace safety and risk reduction for public employers, including fatality and severe-injury reporting, recordkeeping, compliance assistance, the Safety Partnership Agreement (SPA) Program, and a worker complaint intake process.
• OSHA On-Site Consultation & SHARP Recognition Program OSHA-aligned consultation services and the Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP) for smaller, high-hazard Ohio employers, providing co-branded OSHA safety and health assistance and recognition.
• Workforce Safety Innovation Center (WSIC) Grants BWC's investment arm funding development of personal protective equipment (PPE) and personal protective technology (PPT) through a structured grant application and review pipeline, with the fourth round offering $30M in funding.
• Safety Grants Program Grant programs that assist Ohio employers in purchasing equipment to significantly reduce the risk of workplace injury, including the School Safety and Security Grant (e.g., $29,490 awarded to Utica Shale Academy). Reopened in 2025.
• Safety Councils Program Safety council program allowing Ohio employers to network, learn workplace risk-management strategies, and earn financial rebates on their BWC premiums in exchange for participation.
• Ohio Safety Congress & Expo® (OSC) Large-scale annual workplace safety and health conference and expo hosted by BWC, billed as the largest free safety and health conference in the country (e.g., OSC26® March 11–13, 2026 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center; OSC26 returns March 16–19, 2027).
• BWC Learning Center / Safety Courses In-person and virtual safety training courses (e.g., OSHA 10, CSP exam review, machine guarding, ergonomics, lockout/tagout, First Aid, Confined Space, Electrical Safety) registered through the BWC Learning Center course registration system.
• Safety Videos (Streamery Library) Streaming safety video library delivered through the third-party Streamery platform (learn.streamery.co), accessible via the OSS Resource Center, to support employer workplace safety training.
• Safety & Health Research Program Research grant program providing up to $300,000 per project to maximize the impact of workplace safety and health research in Ohio, complemented by research dashboards (CFOI, SOII, Claim counts and rates).
• Medical Care & MCO Coordination (Enhanced Care Program) Program for injured workers to choose BWC-certified medical providers and managed care organizations (MCOs), including the Enhanced Care Program for workers with injured knees and Alternative Dispute Resolution for treatment decisions.
• Workers' Compensation Benefits (Including Death Claims) Workers' compensation benefits for injured workers and dependents, including financial and rehabilitation benefits and death-claim benefits from workplace injuries or occupational diseases.
• Claims Services (Filing, Decisions, Appeals, Self-Insuring Employers) Claims services for injured Ohio workers, including filing a claim, obtaining a claim decision, appealing a claim decision via the Ohio Industrial Commission's I.C.O.N system, viewing claim information (authenticated via OHID), and handling claims with self-insuring employers.
• Fraud Prevention / Special Investigations Department (SID) Anti-fraud program investigating worker, employer, and provider fraud plus safety violations through BWC's Special Investigations Department (celebrating 32 years of fraud-fighting), with online fraud reporting and dedicated units for healthcare-provider, injured-worker, and employer fraud.
• Substance Use Prevention and Recovery Program (SUPR) BWC program providing incentives and financial support to Ohio employers for substance-use prevention and recovery initiatives in the workplace. Launched July 16, 2025.
• Kids' Chance Ohio Scholarships Scholarship program for youth whose parent has a work-related injury, funded through BWC partnerships.
• Medical & Health Symposium (MHS) Annual medical and health symposium hosted by BWC for healthcare providers (e.g., Sept. 16–18, 2026; Sept. 17–19, 2025 virtual).
• Ombuds Office Independent ombuds function within BWC providing complaint resolution for employers and injured workers, publishing annual reports (2023, 2024 archives available).

Quantifiable outcome

• Ohio private employers saved nearly $60 million in premiums following a 6% rate reduction approved by BWC Board of Directors.
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and flagship.

• IAIABC (International Association of Industrial Accident Boards and Commissions)minorOthers · 1 June 2026IAIABC recognized seven workers' compensation industry leaders (NextGen Awards) including emerging professionals from North America and Saskatchewan — the awards highlight talent and innovation in the workers' compensation sector that Ohio BWC participates in.
• Occupational Health Link (OHL)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 December 2025Occupational Health Link merged with Sheakley UniComp (announced Dec. 21, 2025) as a Managed Care Organization serving Ohio employers' workers' compensation medical management needs.
• Sheakley UniCompcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 October 2025Sheakley UniComp is a Managed Care Organization (MCO) contracted with Ohio BWC to manage medical aspects of workers' compensation claims. Following the merger with ProMedica Medical Management (effective Oct. 13, 2025) and the merger with Occupational Health Link (announced Dec. 21, 2025), Sheakley UniComp became the consolidated MCO for affected employers.
• ProMedica Medical ManagementcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 October 2025ProMedica Medical Management merged with Sheakley UniComp to form a single combined Managed Care Organization (MCO), with Sheakley UniComp becoming the employer MCO effective Monday, Oct. 13, 2025.
• OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBWC runs the OSHA On-Site Consultation Program for private employers and the Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP), providing co-branded OSHA safety and health assistance to Ohio employers.
• E-Verify (U.S. federal program)minorOthersBWC participates in E-Verify to help confirm workers' identity and job eligibility as part of its employment practices.
• Ohio Recovery Friendly WorkplaceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBWC is recognized as an Ohio Recovery Friendly Workplace in partnership with the Ohio Mental Health & Addiction Services agency.
• State of Ohio Governor's Office (Governor Mike DeWine)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerOhio Governor Mike DeWine publicly announced rate reductions and Workforce Safety Innovation Grant awards (e.g., the $9.4M third-round grants), reflecting close alignment with the Governor's office on workforce safety initiatives.
• Ohio Industrial Commission (IC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBWC works jointly with the Ohio Industrial Commission (IC) on workers' compensation claim appeals and dispute resolution, including the I.C.O.N. system for filing appeals and hearings.
• Ohio Common Sense Initiative Office (Governor's Office)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBWC's OAC rules under review are coordinated with the Common Sense Initiative office, which allows visitors to register for email alerts when agency rules are open for review.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I): Washington's exclusive state-run workers' compensation insurer and workplace-safety agency. Like Ohio BWC, it operates a state insurance fund, sets premium rates, runs safety consultations, and administers claims, making it the closest structural peer in the U.S.
• Pennsylvania Bureau of Workers' Compensation: Pennsylvania's state bureau administering workers' compensation insurance, claims, and compliance. Operates with a similar mandate to Ohio BWC for employer coverage, rate setting, and workplace safety oversight.
• New York State Workers' Compensation Board: New York's state agency administering workers' compensation coverage, claims adjudication, and dispute resolution. Comparable to Ohio BWC as a state-level regulator and administrator of workers' comp benefits and employer compliance.
• State Compensation Insurance Fund (California State Fund): California's quasi-state workers' compensation carrier, providing mandated coverage and competing with private insurers. It mirrors BWC's role as a state-affiliated workers' comp insurer offering safety services, claims management, and competitive premium rates.
• Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers' Compensation: Texas's state regulatory and administrative body for workers' compensation. Comparable to Ohio BWC in administering workers' comp rules, claims processes, and dispute resolution for Texas employers and injured workers.
• Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission: Illinois's state agency adjudicating workers' compensation claims and disputes. Shares with Ohio BWC the state-level mandate to administer workers' comp benefits and compliance for employers and injured workers.

Broad incumbents

• The Hartford (Workers' Compensation): Major U.S. insurer with a substantial workers' compensation business and a focus on mid-market and small employers. Comparable to BWC's employer services and safety offerings, though it operates as a private competitor outside Ohio's state fund monopoly.
• Chubb (Workers' Compensation): Global insurer with a sizable U.S. workers' compensation book, often serving mid-to-large employers. Comparable to BWC in providing WC coverage and risk management services, though it competes as a private carrier.
• Travelers (Workers' Compensation Insurance): One of the largest U.S. commercial property & casualty insurers, with a significant workers' compensation line. Comparable as a major workers' comp carrier, though it competes only inside Ohio's residual market, not against the state fund monopoly.

Others

• OSHA (U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration): Federal agency setting workplace safety standards and running its own On-Site Consultation and SHARP programs. BWC partners with OSHA to deliver PERRP, SHARP, and OSHA On-Site Consultation in Ohio, making OSHA the closest functional peer in workplace-safety program delivery.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ohiobwc
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/BWCOhio
• Facebookfacebook.com/OhioBureauofWorkersCompensation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ohio-bwc

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles23 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation