WCRI: Comp Hospital Outpatient Payments Lower in Fee Schedule States

Hospital outpatient payments in workers’ compensation claims are lower and growing at a slower rate in states with fixed reimbursement fee schedules compared with states that have no fee schedules, according to a study released Thursday by the Workers Compensation Research Institute. The study, “Hospital Outpatient Payment Index: Interstate Variations and Policy Analysis, 13th Edition,” looked at hospital payments for common workers' comp outpatient surgeries in 36 states, which the WCRI says represent 88% of workers’ comp benefits paid across the country. Researc...