Claims by durable goods manufacturing workers declined from 1 in 9 California job injuries in 2001 to less than 1 in 14 claims in 2008, underscoring the steep decline in manufacturing in the state, but average claim costs in this sector have jumped sharply since 2005, with both medical and indemnity benefit payments on the rise.

This Score Card focuses on California workers’ compensation claims filed by Agriculture workers. It is the fourth in a series of analyses that provide data from CWCI’s Industry Claims Information System (ICIS) database on claims experience within specific industry categories.

Mercantile workers represented 1 out of 8 California job injury claims and a similar proportion of paid losses during the 8-year period spanning accident years (AY) 2001 through 2008. Comparing results by individual accident year, however, shows mercantile claims as a percentage of all claims fell steadily across this period.

CWCI’s second ICIS Industry Score Card profiles workers’ compensation claims experience for professional and clerical workers in California. Based on a sample of 361,384 claims for injuries occurring between 2000 and 2008.

The first Score Card in the series focuses on construction industry claims from accident years 2000 to 2008.

CWCI analyzed 201,081 permanent disability (PD) claims to assess statewide and regional changes in attorney involvement, initial PD benefit payment, claim closure rates and average claim payments following the implementation of SB 899 in April 2004.

A new CWCI study was conducted to assess the association between recent statutory and regulatory reforms and changes in pharmaceutical utilization and reimbursement patterns in the California workers’ compensation system. Some of the key findings include:

California workers’ compensation law provides that injured workers are entitled to all reasonable and necessary medical care to cure or relieve the effects of a work-related injury or illness.

A new CWCI study shows significant increases in California workers’ comp medical payments since AY 2005, with amounts paid for treatment, pharmaceuticals and durable medical equipment, med-legal reports, and medical management all on the rise.

Updated data on temporary disability claim outcomes under SB 899 finds that while the average TD paid on lost-time claims in California at 12 and 24 months remain less than pre-reform levels, average TD payouts for recent injury claims have increased and are nearing pre-SB 899 levels.