National – The Workers’ Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) released the 25th Edition of its Medical Benchmarks series. The studies reveal a decline in the utilization of medical services by injured workers in most of the 17 states analyzed. The research focused on two key aspects: the percentage of claims and the number of services provided. The states included in the study are Arkansas, California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Wisconsin, which together represent 60% of all workers’ compensation benefit payments nationwide.
Delaware – The Workers’ Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) published a study titled “Trends in the Delaware Workers’ Compensation System, 2017–2022.” This study reveals that the average cost of workers’ compensation claims in Delaware, for cases involving more than seven days of lost work, increased by three (3) percent annually from 2019 to 2022.
New Jersey – S3703 was introduced in the Senate with the goal of ensuring that cost-sharing amounts for prescription drugs accurately reflect the costs incurred by insurance carriers. This bill aims to promote fairer and more transparent pricing for consumers. Specifically, it mandates that the cost-sharing amounts for certain prescription drug benefits be based on the final cost to the carrier.
Pennsylvania – This week, the Senate Rules and Executive Nominations Committee reviewed HB 1632. This bill seeks to enable firefighters, emergency medical service personnel, and police officers to file workers’ compensation claims for Post-Traumatic Stress Injuries (PTSI). Since its introduction, HB 1632 gained significant support, with 41 cosponsors (37 Democrats and 4 Republicans).
HB 2559 attracted attention since its introduction in the House. So far, it gained support from 13 Democratic cosponsors. This bill seeks to standardize the eligibility criteria for awarding death benefits to widows and widowers. Additionally, it exempts spouses of first responders from the rule that ends death benefits upon remarriage.
This week (today), the House Labor and Industry Committee held a hearing addressing the Workers’ Compensation drug issue and the Federated Insurance Company v. Summit Pharmacy court case. The discussion centered on prescription drug costs, the implementation of new pricing standards, and the impact on various stakeholders. The hearing was live-streamed, and more details can be found on the House Labor and Industry Committee’s website.
Texas – The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation announced the adoption of its 2025 agenda for the Workers’ Compensation Research and Evaluation Group. This group aims to assess the feasibility and impact of transitioning to a more current version of the American Medical Association’s Guide to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment. Currently, Texas utilizes the fourth edition of the AMA guides, whereas 27 states have adopted the most recent editions, with 13 states using the fifth edition and 14 states using the sixth edition.
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