Illinois Costs Per Workers’ Comp Claim Highest of 15 States Included in Study

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Illinois: Study finds medical costs per claim high, but growth slowing

Medical costs per workers’ compensation claim in Illinois were among the highest of 15 study states one year after the implementation of its first medical fee schedule in 2006. However, the Workers Compensation Research Institute found that growth in medical costs per claim slowed to 5 percent in 2007 claims evaluated in 2008 after double-digit growth rates before the fee schedule.

The study by the Cambridge, Mass.-based organization also found that indemnity benefits per claim with more than seven days of lost time in Illinois grew 7 percent in 2007 claims evaluated in 2008 — the same rate as previous years. Researchers attributed the steady growth in indemnity benefits per claim in 2007 to a 6 percent increase in the duration of temporary disability and a 5 percent increase in the average permanent partial disability/lump-sum payment per PPD/lump-sum claim.

Read the entire story at Risk & Insurance Online.