Health Insurance May Reduce Work Comp ER Visits, Researchers Find

Increasing the number of people with health insurance can drive down workers’ compensation costs by reducing the number of emergency room visits, according to a new study from the Upjohn Institute for Employment Research. The study looked at emergency room visits in Massachusetts before and after the state implemented legislation that greatly expanded coverage in the state in 2006. Researchers determined whether those visits were billed to workers’ compensation or another payer. Per-capita emergency room visits, based on county population, fell 6.7% while the health care ref...