Due to continued escalation of medical and indemnity costs, many organizations may soon experience a rise in workers’ compensation premiums. A recent report, “Workers’ Compensation: A Bumpy Road from Recession to Recovery,” released in April 2012 by Conning Research & Consulting outlines the key drivers that have led to inadequate rates… [Continue Reading]

Last week we discussed the coming crisis in workers comp – the impact of opioids on disability duration, claim costs, and reserves. It is my contention that most insurers, rating agencies, and actuaries have not yet fully grasped the impact opioids will have. When they do, execs will be demanding solutions, and fast. Those solutions are the subject… [Continue Reading]

The single biggest crisis facing workers comp is NOT the market cycle, employment, investment returns, rate adequacy, or regulatory changes. It is opioids. As Gary Franklin MD, Washington state fund’s Medical Director says, this is a “hair on fire” issue. Although there’s precious little evidencee that opioids are appropriate for the long term… [Continue Reading]

After witnessing the dramatic growth of group health medical provider networks and the resulting managed care savings in the 1980’s, workers’ compensation payors began adding PPNs to their mix of bill and utilization review the following decade. Today these networks are an integral part of virtually every workers… [Continue Reading]

Over the past several years, a number of US insurance carriers assembled exhibits to mark their first hundred years of underwriting workers’ compensation coverage under state laws that proliferated in the early 1900s. The displays included fountain pens, handwritten ledgers, mechanical adding machines, and bank checks. All are wonderfully antiquated… [Continue Reading]

In 1911 this country’s first state-based Workers’ Compensation laws were enacted. Catastrophic worker injuries and deaths followed by the financial ruin of families made it necessary for society to radically change the way workplace injuries were compensated and how employers would be protected in return. The American Workers’ Compensation system is just… [Continue Reading]

With the flurry of media attention on Health Care Reform, these past few weeks particularly, one thing seems clear – the impact of reform on Workers’ Compensation remains to be seen. However, thinking that there will be no impact would be imprudent. According to the old adage, “one thing is certain, and that is change”. Much of the change… [Continue Reading]

Medical expenses in workers’ compensation continue to climb even as the claims frequency falls. NCCI’s 2011 State of the Line report showed that medical losses grew at average annual rates of 8.9% between 1994 and 2001 and 6.7% between 2002 and 2009. Conversely, claim frequency declined by 4% in 2008 after a 2.7% drop in 2007, continuing a trend… [Continue Reading]

If someone threw a basketball and a golf ball at you at the same time, which would you try to avoid? Most people try not to take the hit from the larger basketball even though the golf ball can do significantly more damage. A basketball slammed into your face hurts, but a golf ball can cause contusions, a concussion and… [Continue Reading]

Interpretation today looks like case management did 30 years ago — no nationally required or accepted professional certifications and few standardized practice requirements. There is little oversight regarding fees and outcomes. As an industry, it is largely unregulated. However, several recent regulatory and judicial decisions may signal… [Continue Reading]