Austin, TX – The Texas Division of Insurance’s Division of Workers’ Compensation (TDI-DWC) recently released its 2022 Division of Workers’ Compensation Biennial Report to the 88th Texas Legislature.
The report presents system trends that allow the Division of Workers’ Compensation, policymakers, and system stakeholders to gauge the relative health of the Texas workers’ compensation system and consider whether additional legislative changes are necessary.
Key highlights included:
- Workers’ compensation insurance market
Since 2003, workers’ compensation insurance rates have dropped nearly 77%, while insurance companies writing in Texas averaged a 10% return on net worth.
- Employer participation
In 2022, the percentage of employers that were nonsubscribers (25%) was the lowest in six years. The percentage of Texas employees working for non-subscribing employers (17%) was the lowest in 12 years.
- Medical costs
Texas’ cost per claim with 12 months maturity is about 22% less than the median cost of 18 states analyzed in a recent study.
- Return to work
There have been steady improvements in return-to-work rates for Texas injured employees in the last decade. 83% of employees injured in 2020 returned to work within six months, and 92% went back to work within the first year after their injury.
The DWC noted its focus this coming biennium will be continuing to find new ways to leverage technology through existing resources to improve administrative efficiencies for both DWC and system stakeholders. This includes continuing technology improvements to make interactions with stakeholders more user friendly, working to resolve disputes more quickly, and using systems to ensure cohesive internal coordination across program areas.
Read the full report: TDI-DWC: Biennial Report to the 88th Texas Legislature (PDF)
Source: TDI-DWC