Study: Massachusetts Workers’ Comp Claim Costs Rise Rapidly

Workers’ compensation total costs per claim in Massachusetts grew rapidly from 2003 to 2009, so says a new study by the Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI).

The study conducted by the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based WCRI found that total costs per claim with more than seven days lost time grew by 36 percent over the study period, faster than the median growth rate among the 16 study states of 30 percent.

The growth in total costs per claim was driven by several factors, including growth in medical and indemnity costs per claim as well as growth in benefit delivery expenses per claim.

Medical costs per claim with more than seven days of lost time in Massachusetts, at $7,573, were the lowest of the study states – some 41 percent lower than the typical study state.

Workers in Massachusetts received their first indemnity payment fastest of the study states. Fifty-six percent of injured workers received their first indemnity payment within 21 days of the date of injury.

Source: Workers Compensation Research Institute