WISCONSIN'S WORKERS' COMPENSATION SYSTEM HAD THE HIGHEST PRICES AND FASTEST GROWTH IN WCRI'S MEDICAL PRICE INDEX

Cambridge, MA, November 11, 2011 – According to a new study by the Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI), Wisconsin had the highest prices and they were growing most rapidly among the study states.

The study, Medical Price Index for Workers’ Compensation, Third Edition (MPI-WC), shows that the price for nonhospital services in Wisconsin in 2010 was the highest of the 25 study states, more than twice the prices in the 25-state median, and nearly 50 percent higher than the median of the 6 states with no fee schedules. Over the nine years covered in this study, the prices in Wisconsin grew most rapidly. The prices in Wisconsin increased 42 percent, much faster compared to a median growth rate of 11 percent of the states with fee schedules, also faster than the 28 percent typical growth rate of the states without fee schedules.

“If you are a policy maker or other stakeholder in Wisconsin and want to understand the growth of medical prices for injured workers in your state as well as how that compares to other states, this is the tool for you,” said Ramona Tanabe, WCRI Counsel and Deputy Director.

The MPI-WC tracks medical prices paid in 25 large states from calendar year 2002 through June 2010 for nonhospital, nonfacility services billed by physicians, physical therapists, and chiropractors. The medical services fall into eight major groups: evaluation and management, physical medicine, surgery, major radiology, minor radiology, neurological testing, pain management injections, and emergency care.

The 25 states included in the MPI-WC, which represent more than three quarters of the workers' compensation benefits paid in the United States, are: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Click here to download a free copy of this report.

ABOUT WCRI:

The Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) is an independent, not-for-profit research organization based in Cambridge, MA. Since 1983, WCRI has been a catalyst for significant improvements in workers' compensation systems around the world with its objective, credible, and high-quality research. WCRI's members include employers; insurers; governmental entities; managed care companies; health care providers; insurance regulators; state labor organizations; and state administrative agencies in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand.