Research

The latest CWCI Injury Score Card examines head and spinal injuries without spinal cord involvement, which comprise only a small percentage of claims, but account for only a small percentage of California workers' compensation claims, but a disproportionate share of paid losses.

An update to the CWCI analysis on the use of Schedule II painkillers in Calif workers' comp suggests that that the use of these drugs peaked later than initially indicated, with revised data showing Schedule II opioids fell from a record 6.7% of workers' comp prescriptions in the 2nd quarter of last year to 4.9% of the prescriptions in the 4th quarter.

The latest CWCI Injury Scorecard takes a detailed look at California workers' compensation claims involving shoulder, arm, knee, and lower leg sprains using data from 236,567 open and closed claims from AY 2001-2011.

This study documents the size and structure of health and disability benefit systems in the mid-1990s and projects the impact of mandating medical coverage for all California employees and their non-working dependents.

This study sets the parameters for potential medical savings that could result from a mandated expansion of group medical managed care into workers' compensation.

This report traces the history and development of evidence-based medicine (EBM) and weighs the potential impact of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) guidelines by comparing ACOEM guideline recommendations to existing treatment and disability patterns among injured workers in California. The analysis modeled detailed medical and disability data from more than 1 million workplace injuries reflecting $8.6 billion in workers' compensation benefit payments. The study found that applying the objective ACOEM guideline criteria could significantly increase quality of care, reduce unnecessary medical costs and facilitate return-to-work for the low-back injuries.