Pricing remains generally flat for most buyers, with those with favorable loss histories seeing especially competitive conditions. Capacity is ample, and carriers are generally eager to deploy capital and compete. Some insurers, however, are pulling back due to prior aggressive pricing and concerns about loss development.

Healthcare, hospitality, and construction employers are seeing greater underwriting scrutiny due to high wage growth and an uptick in injury rates for first-year employees. Insurers are also watching efforts across several states to expand coverage for mental health-related claims and to redefine “gig” worker classification, which could lead to more claims.

On Jan. 31, President Trump signed an executive order directing federal departments and agencies to each “identify at least 10 existing regulations to be repealed.” In July, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published more than two dozen proposed rules aimed at repealing or scaling back existing regulations.

Among the most notable proposals is a new interpretation of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970’s general duty clause. The administration proposes to narrow OSHA’s enforcement agenda by “[excluding] from enforcement known hazards that are inherent and inseparable from the core nature of a professional activity or performance.” Other proposed rules would scale back reporting of musculoskeletal disorders and COVID-19 cases. Some of the proposed rules will affect specific industries, including the construction, healthcare, and maritime sectors.

Insurers and employers alike will be closely monitoring these proposed rule changes, which could shift more liability to employers — with an especially significant potential impact on small and midsize businesses — and may affect workers’ compensation insurance premiums. Individual states may also respond with their own new regulations.

Questions about the overall state and health of the economy persist, which could also have implications for workers’ compensation. Economic uncertainty could lead to layoffs, which may result in employees doing more work than normal, performing work they are not trained for, or taking more time to return to work. These trends could contribute to increases in claims frequency and/or severity.