This case study details how a nationwide transportation company providing bus services in over 500 US locations improved on Workers’ Comp Costs. The corresponding chapters from “Your Ultimate Guide to Mastering Workers’ Comp Costs: Reduce Costs 20% to 50% (Comprehensive Edition)” also indicated here.
These business units provide bus service in major metropolitan cities, student transportation, and special needs busing nationwide. Some operations have unionized labor. The company needed a comprehensive review of their claims process in order to establish a more cost-effective workers’ compensation insurance program. Workers’ comp claims were the company’s single largest cost after payroll.
Following our recommended approach, the company’s risk management committee, their TPA, and the insurance broker worked as a team for 56 weeks to identify and implement changes in processes throughout the organization. The team provided an integrated pre-loss, claims management, and post-loss control solution. The insurance broker’s claim vice president was an integral part of the team, as was the account executive at the claims administrator.
The program resulted in a 20% reduction in overall loss costs. It included improvement in return-to-work ratio; reduction in claims; and fewer lost time claims compared to medical only claims. This reduction was sustained in subsequent years – in other words, the changes that were made were sustainable.
There was very little understanding by senior management about the financial impact of workers’ compensation, and they felt helpless to change the situation. There was no return-to-work program. Lack of a return-to-work program resulted in many employees staying out of work for undetermined, unplanned, extended periods of time. Their high-deductible insurance program resulted in paying the first $250,000 out-of-pocket.
To start, the team located all existing forms, documents, policies and procedures.
The corresponding chapters from “Your Ultimate Guide to Mastering Workers’ Comp Costs: Reduce Costs 20% to 50% (Comprehensive Edition)” also indicated below.
These areas were revised as described in Chapter 2: Fundamentals of Cost Containment.
The Disability Note was rewritten to include information the company needs such as diagnosis, prognosis, length of time out of work, treatment plan, and date of next visit. Most importantly, medical abilities and restrictions detailing what the employee can do in a transitional duty job are included along with a target return to work date. This additional information put the employer in charge of the return to work process.
The Disability Note is now given to the treating physician by the injured worker at the first appointment. The doctor completes the form, describing in detail everything about the employee’s injury, treatment, and return-to-work expectations. The form is faxed by the doctor to the employer the same day. Knowing when an employee is expected to return to work allows the employer to gain control of the claim from the beginning of the reporting process rather than later when return-to-work issues become murky and the employee has lost interest in returning to work.
These areas were revised as described in Chapter 3: Training and Building Commitment
These areas were revised as described in Chapter 6: Post-Injury Response Procedure.
These areas were revised as described in Chapter 8: Working with Your Insurance Adjusters or TPA.
These areas were revised as described in Chapter 11: Return to Work and Transitional Duty.
Job analysis was performed on each job, then a transitional duty job bank was set up for numerous types of medical restrictions. Transitional Job Task Lists were provided to each business unit during training, so they had a list of viable job options for most types of injury.
All these strategies and more are found in our training manual. Your Ultimate Guide to Mastering Workers’ Comp Costs: Reduce Costs 20% to 50% (Comprehensive Edition) discusses all of these techniques and suggests ways to bring workers’ compensation practices into line with industry best practices.
Purchase the Ultimate Guide to Mastering Workers’ Comp Costs book or view sample chapters or contact Advisen’s Merri Bastone at [email protected]
The book’s topics are organized into the following chapters:
1. Insurance Fundamentals
2. Cost Containment Basics
3. Training and Building Commitment
4. Roles & Responsibilities Best Practices
5. Reporting the Claim
6. Post Injury Response Procedure
7. Communication with Employees
8. Working with Your Insurance Adjuster and TPA
9. Safety and Loss Control
10. Wellness Programs
11. Return to Work and Transitional Duty
12. Other Indemnity Cost Containment Measures
13. Directing Medical Care
14. Medical Cost Containment
15. Fighting Fraud and Abuse
16. Rehabilitating the Injured Employee
17. Managing Prescription Drug Use and Abuse
18. Claims Resolution and Settlements
19. Federal Employees Compensation Act (Bonus Chapter)
About the Author
Rebecca Shafer, JD, President of Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc., is a national expert in the field of workers’ compensation. She is a writer, speaker, and publisher. Her expertise is working with employers to reduce workers’ compensation costs and her clients include airlines, healthcare, printing/publishing, pharmaceuticals, retail, hospitality, and manufacturing. She is the author of the #1 selling training manual on cost containment, Your Ultimate Guide to Mastering Workers’ Comp Costs: Reduce Costs 20% to 50%.
Rebecca Shafer
President, Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc.
Risk Consultant/Attorney
Phone (860) 786-8286
Visit: www.WCManual.com
Blog: http://Blog.ReduceYourWorkersComp.com
Newsletter: http://www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com/newsletter.php
Book: Your Ultimate Guide to Mastering Workers Comp Costs:Reduce Costs 20%-50%
