Comp Sees Increase in Advanced Medical Practitioners Treating Workers

The workers' compensation industry has seen a steady rise in the number of nurse practitioners and physician assistants tending to injured workers during first medical visits, a shift researchers say was spurred by physician shortages but that has had little impact on claims costs, according to a Workers Compensation Research Institute report released Thursday. The percentage of first office visits with physicians decreased from 81% in 2013 to 60% in 2022. Over the same period, the percentage of first office visits with physician assistants increased to 22% from 11%, while the percentage ...