Comp Medical Payments Decline, Indemnity Benefits Grow

Workers’ compensation medical payments per claim in numerous states decreased through 2020 and 2021, while indemnity benefits grew during that same time, reflecting economic changes during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to comp industry research released Tuesday. A package of studies released Tuesday by the Workers Compensation Research Institute compared medical payments, indemnity benefits and benefit delivery expenses in 17 states and how they changed during the early days of the pandemic. “Growth in wages was a key driver of the trend in indemnity...