The Workers’ Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) released the 17^th edition of their CompScope™ Benchmarks Report. The report looks at the impact of state workers’ compensation reforms on things like claim costs, rate of litigation and disability duration.

The institute reviewed states that had undergone legislative changes or had significant court rulings. The 18 states reviewed were California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin. Factors that were reviewed in this study were the length of time from the injury to the first indemnity payment, average total cost per claim, average payment per claim for medical care and average payment per claim for indemnity benefits. They compared any changes in income benefits, medical payments, disability duration, litigation and benefit delivery expenses between states.

In California they found that total costs per claim have been steady between 2010 and 2013. Researchers attributed that to the state’s Senate Bill 863, which increased permanent disability benefits and sought to lower medical care costs while introducing the Independent Medical Review for medical disputes.

In Florida they found that total costs per claim increased between 2010 and 2015, but there were decisions last year from the Florida Supreme Court that may slow or stop those increases in costs. They determined that the law limiting attorney’s fees for workers’ compensation cases violated worker’s rights, abut opponents said it would only increase costs for employers. The state also found that a cap on temporary disability benefits was unconstitutional.

Illinois saw total costs per claim decrease by 6.4 percent since 2010, which researchers attribute to a 30 percent reduction in fee schedule rates for their medical services which was implemented in 2011.

Indiana’s total costs per claim decreased by 4 percent from 2014 to 2015, a product of a 10 percent decrease in medical payments but a 5 percent increase in indemnity benefits per claim. Researchers say could be related to the House Enrolled Act 1320 which implemented a hospital fee schedule and increased income benefits to workers.

North Carolina’s total costs per claim have been steady since 2009 after fee schedule reforms and House Bill 709, which reformed income benefits.

Check out the press release from WCRI here.