WCRI: Employer Choice Policies Lower Cost in Limited Number of Claims

State policies that allow employers to choose the doctor who will treat an injured worker, touted as a way to reduce excessive medical spending, for the most part do not reduce average claim costs, according to a study released Thursday by the Workers Compensation Research Institute. But an impact of employers’ ability to choose a provider was seen in a subset of claims, in particular, for the most expensive back-related injuries, WCRI researchers said. The WCRI study compared average costs per claim in 15 states where employers have control over provider choice, and in 10 states ...