Board Bulletins and Subject Numbers

September 12, 2024

The New York State Workers' Compensation Board (Board) is committed to enhancing efficiency by utilizing web-based platforms and electronic data submissions. As part of our ongoing efforts to reduce reliance on paper forms, we are transitioning to electronic submission of the Request for Further Action by Insurer/Employer (Form RFA-2).

The Board anticipates implementing electronic submission of the RFA-2 form in late 2025. At that time, electronic submission of the form will be mandated, and paper submissions will no longer be accepted. This mandate only affects carriers, Board approved self-insured employers, and third-party administrators (TPAs).

The electronic submission process will include data validation, provide additional fields to capture more specific information, ensure receipt of all required information, and automatically update the case file upon successful submission. These benefits will reduce errors and processing time compared to the current RFA-2 paper form process.

The Board will provide the following electronic submission methods:

• eCase: After retrieving an individual case in eCase, there will be a new eForm option that will allow users to enter the RFA-2 data into an eForm and submit it electronically for the individual case. The eForm will walk users through each field using a web-based wizard and upon successful submission, the eForm document will be available for download, and immediately placed into the electronic case folder.
• XML options:
• sFTP: An XML file submission process, via secure File Transfer Protocol (sFTP), that will allow for the submission of multiple electronic RFA-2 eForms in a single file that conforms to the Board's XML schema specification. The Board will generate a corresponding XML acknowledgement file indicating acceptance or rejection of each individual RFA-2 eForm submitted in the XML file. For each accepted RFA-2 eForm submission within the XML file, a corresponding RFA-2 eForm document (PDF) will be immediately placed into the electronic case folder and the documents will also be included in the XML acknowledgement file. For rejected RFA-2 eForm submissions within the XML file, the acknowledgement file will include the specific rejection reason(s).
• API: The Board will provide an Application Programming Interface (API) for those who wish to electronically submit a single RFA-2 eForm in real time by having their computer system talk directly to the Board's computer system. The API will immediately process the RFA-2 eForm and return acknowledgement information indicating acceptance or rejection. The API acknowledgment will include the RFA-2 eForm PDF if the filing was successful. The API will return the rejection reason(s) if the filing was rejected.

There will be a mandatory testing process for those who opt to submit RFA-2 eForms via one of the XML methods described above. There will be no testing required for those who submit the RFA-2 eForm via eCase.

If you are interested in learning more about the XML methods, please email the Board at eForms@wcb.ny.gov for more information about requirements and how you can prepare for the transition.

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