What’s up for 2012 – predictions for work comp in the Next Year – Part Two

My crystal ball blanked out yesterday after revealing the top three predictions for 2012; it recharged overnight and looks ready to continue this morning. I’ll see what it shows and hopefully, before the light dims, we’ll have a clear picture of what the new year will reveal.
4. Attacking opioid addiction and dependency will hit the top of many payers’, regulators’, and employers’ agendas.
Led by reports and publicity from notables including Gary Franklin, Medical Director of Washington State’s work comp fund, Alex Swedlow of CWCI, WCRI and NCCI, there’s been a tremendous awakening among stakeholders to the human and financial cost of opioid abuse in workers comp. The quicker payers are already moving from “oh my it’s a big problem” to “here’s the plan to fix it.”
It’s about time. The damage caused by rampant over-prescribing of opioids is immeasurable. Devastated families, dead claimants, rising insurance premiums, increased crime, completely unnecessary disability and higher costs for employers and taxpayers are the result.
Identification of claimants at high risk for addiction and treatment of those individuals must – must be a priority. Intelligent payers will stop ignoring the problem or hoping it will go away, and work to a) prevent more overuse and b) help those already addicted/dependent to get healthy.
5. Now that Illinois is starting to approve Preferred Provider Programs, there will be lots of interest followed by disappointment that they really don’t do much to control over-utilization.
I know, this is a gimme. The good folk at the Illinois Department of Insurance have been forced to come up with regulations to implement legislation that is about as convoluted as it could possibly be. Unfortunately, claimants who are interested in gaming the system will use the loopholes in the PPP system to get what they want when they want it from the providers they want to get it from. The PPP will only really work for claimants who weren’t interested in gaming the system.
Unfortunately the PPP isn’t much of a solution.
6. As work comp premiums begin to rise, we’re going to see a renewed interest in loss control, risk management, and medical management.
With rate increases coming in California, Florida, and Massachusetts (among other states), employers are going to have to dust off those yellowed risk management plans, recall the basics of loss prevention, and perhaps re-hire the loss control pros they laid off over the last few years when their services weren’t ‘needed’.
Look for the big consulting houses, and smaller boutique firms, to emphasize their loss control expertise and capabilities; mono-line (and heavily-work-comp-focused) carriers will also tout their knowledge and ability to help employers control comp program costs.
The ball is dimming, and client work calling…time to put the sphere back in the charger.
We’ll conclude tomorrow.