Michael Moline
Want to find out how Florida’s workers’ compensation system regulates pharmacy fees, as compared to other states? Provides treatment for PTSD? Manages the cost of hospital inpatient and outpatient fees?
The annual report from the Workers Compensation Research Institute, released this week, spells out all of that and more.
It’s intended as a one-stop resource for regulators, journalists, and other parties grappling with the messy details of workers’ comp policy.
The document comprises a series of tables containing state-by-state comparisons of the cost-containment policies, including medical fee schedules, choice of provider, treatment guidelines, and medical dispute regulations. Medical benefits represent the largest slice of workers’ comp costs.
It includes data from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and federal compensation programs for longshoremen and federal employees.
“This study provides a basic understanding of the cost containment initiatives adopted nationally, and provides additional references for those who want more detail,” said Ramona Tanabe, the institute’s executive vice president and counsel.
“We don’t make any recommendations,” spokesman Andrew Kenneally said. “Our role is to provide information to help policymakers make decisions.”
The proprietary report is available here. The institute’s members include insurers, labor organizations, state regulators, business groups, and ratings organizations.
