Use of Medical Treatment Guidelines Split 50/50 Among States' Work Comp Systems

Five years ago, a workers' compensation reform bill required Montana to adopt treatment guidelines for injured workers. After considering the customary options — the Work Loss Data Institute's Official Disability Guidelines (ODG), the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) standards or state-specific guidelines — Montana went with a combination of two. The state adopted Colorado's medical treatment guidelines in 2011, filling in gaps with elements of the ACOEM guidelines. "From that point moving forward, we have only mad...