The utilization of nonhospital and hospital outpatient services in the Illinois workers compensation system decreased in 2020, the drop attributed to medical facility closures and service limitations during the beginning of the pandemic, according to a new study from the Workers Compensation Research Institute. Tuesday’s study said the percentage of workers comp claims with major surgery decreased mostly in the…
An end to the pandemic national emergency does not mean an end to COVID-19 workers compensation claims, but claim activity has decreased dramatically, experts say. On April 10, President Joe Biden signed a resolution ending the national emergency related to the pandemic, which ended some temporary federal programming and waivers but left intact the public health emergency over the virus….
A reversal of a years-long trend that saw dips in drug use among injured workers, prescriptions in workers compensation inched up in 2022 with drug utilization per claim increasing 2.6%, costs per claim increasing 3.7%, and costs per prescription rising 1.1%, according to a report released Wednesday by Enlyte Group LLC. Enlyte, which provides comp services, also found the top…
Workers compensation medical payments per claim in numerous states decreased through 2020 and 2021, while indemnity benefits grew during that same time, reflecting economic changes during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to comp industry research released Tuesday. A package of studies released Tuesday by the Workers Compensation Research Institute compared medical payments, indemnity benefits and benefit…
Jobs with the highest rates of opioid overdose fatalities generally have high occupational injury rates and low access to paid sick leave, according to a research paper on the economic impacts of opioids released Monday by the Brookings Institution. Industries with the highest rates of overdose fatalities in the workplace have elevated occupational injury rates for fractures and musculoskeletal disorders,…
As summer approaches, workplace safety agencies and state lawmakers are seeking to formulate standards to protect workers from heat-related dangers on the job. Rising global temperatures, longer and more frequent heatwaves and increased heat-related workers compensation claims are driving advocates to push for more detailed and uniform standards addressing heat illness and injury in the workplace. The issue is playing…
An Illinois appeals court has partially reversed a lower court ruling in a case involving an injured professional softball player, ruling the trial judge improperly dismissed a negligence claim over the employer’s alleged failure to maintain workers compensation insurance coverage. The First District, Fifth Division Appellate Court of Illinois Friday partially affirmed, and partially reversed, a Cook County circuit court…
The price of prescription drugs used in workers compensation cases grew at an annual rate of 3.7% average over a nine-year period, which was offset by a 6% decline in the volume of prescriptions, according to a research paper published Tuesday by the National Council on Compensation Insurance. Analyzing data from 2012 to 2021, NCCI also found that the average…
Studies released Thursday by the Workers Compensation Research Institute show how the adoption of drug formularies in five states affected workers compensation costs. The studies looked at the effect of formularies on prescription drug utilization and associated costs in the Arkansas, California, Indiana, Kentucky and New York comp systems. All five states adopted prescription drug formularies between 2018 and 2019….
An appeals court in Illinois on Wednesday granted a disability award to a firefighter who suffered a stroke but may have had pre-existing conditions. A City of East Peoria for more than 20 years, Charles Melton in 2020 applied for an occupational disease disability pension, alleging a “work-related stroke brought on by exposure as a firefighter” and that he was…
