National – The Workers' Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) released a Hospital Outpatient Report and will host a webinar at the end of June:
Hospital Outpatient Payment Index: Interstate Variations and Policy Analysis - The study analyzed payments for common outpatient surgeries across 36 states, spanning data from 2005 to 2023. The findings reveal that hospital outpatient payments for workers' compensation grew at a faster rate in states with charge-based or no fee schedules compared to those with fixed-amount fee schedules. Additionally, payments were significantly higher in states lacking fee schedules.
June 26th at 2 pm ET, WCRI will host a half-hour webinar discussing key findings from its Heat-Related Illness in the Workplace study. If interested in joining, you can register here.
The National Safety Council (NSC) released steps to address employee mental health and distress in the workforce by integrating mental health into safety programs. Key strategies include treating well-being like any other risk, partnering across departments, creating flexible work policies, and ensuring leadership models a culture that prioritizes worker well-being. Additionally, adjustments to workforce conditions and safety culture are necessary to address unseen distress and its impact on physical injuries. To learn more, check out this article.
Travelers released its 2025 Injury Report , which analyzed 2.6 million workers' compensation claims. The report identified trends such as increasing retirement ages, employee turnover, and longer injury recovery times. Despite a decline in the frequency of workplace injuries, the analysis revealed that new employees, particularly those in their first year, are most vulnerable to injuries, accounting for 36% of injuries and 34% of total claim costs in the last five years.
Industry Watch
Boston, MA (June) - After years of rising rates, the market appears to be stabilizing in many areas such as property, cyber, and management liability. However, casualty and homeowners remain in an unstable “hard market". In addition, rising pharmacy costs continue to impact the employee benefits landscape. The shift in the insurance industry marks a dynamic period of change, with opportunities for innovation and growth despite its inherent complexities and systemic risks. By staying agile, data-driven, and proactive, you can strengthen your business resilience and confidently navigate an uncertain, rapidly evolving risk environment. To read the full report, click here.
Trump’s MFN Push Sparks Concerns for Generics, Biosimilars Makers
Washington, D.C. (June 2) - Inside Health Policy released an article on the recent Executive Order. The Trump administration’s push to revive the controversial “most favored nation” (MFN) pricing policy -- alongside ongoing uncertainty around tariffs and Medicare drug price negotiations -- is creating deep uncertainty for the future of generic and biosimilar drug development in the United States, Association for Accessible Medicines (AAM) President and CEO John Murphy told Inside Health Policy in a Monday interview.
CWCI: Long COVID Accounts for Three Quarters of California Workers’ Comp COVID Claim Payments
California (June 2) - California Workers’ Compensation Institute (CWCI) released a new report, which found that a small number of "Long COVID" cases consumed just over 82% of the treatment payments on COVID claims and almost 74% of all COVID claim payments from AY 2020-2022.
Pain in the Nation 2025: The Epidemics of Alcohol, Drug, and Suicide Deaths
Washington, D.C. (May 28) – Deaths due to drug overdose and alcohol misuse were down in the United States in 2023 and 2024 provisional data predict an unprecedented 27 percent one year drop in overdose deaths. These reductions follow two decades in which such deaths increased at an alarming pace. The improvements are encouraging and are likely related to a number of factors including investments in primary prevention, mental health, harm reduction, and overdose prevention programs. Still, over 200,000 Americans died due to alcohol, drug overdose, and suicide in 2023, twice the rate of such deaths 20 years ago. To read the full story, check out the Trust for America’s Health article here.
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