PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Most occupational injury and illness costs are paid by the government and private payers

2012-05-28
(Press-News.org) (SACRAMENTO, Calif.) — UC Davis researchers have found that workers' compensation insurance is not used nearly as much as it should be to cover the nation's multi-billion dollar price tag for workplace illnesses and injuries. Instead, almost 80 percent of these costs are paid by employer-provided health insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and other disability funds, employees and other payers.

Authors of the study, published in the April issue of the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, said this cost shifting leads to artificially low workers' compensation premiums that should be used to cover wage replacement and medical care for employees injured on the job.

"This is a classic example of what we call a 'negative externality' in economics -- where prices do not accurately reflect costs that spill over to others and have negative social outcomes," said Paul Leigh, lead author of the study and a UC Davis professor of public health sciences affiliated with the UC Davis Center for Healthcare Policy. "Workers' injuries and illnesses cost much more than what current workers' compensation payments suggest, and the resulting low premiums provide little incentive for companies to promote workplace safety."

In a study he published last year, Leigh, an expert in health and labor economics, found that total annual costs for occupational injuries and illnesses in 2007 were nearly $250 billion: $67.09 billion related to medical care and $182.54 billion related to lost productivity.

In the current cost-of-illness study, Leigh showed that just 21 percent -- or $51.7 billion -- of those costs were covered by workers' compensation. He also identified who pays for the extra $198 billion -- or 79 percent.

By combining 2007 data from several government and nonprofit organizations, including the Bureau of Labor Statistics and National Council on Compensation Insurance, Leigh found that the medical costs for occupational injuries and illnesses were primarily paid by these sources: Workers' compensation: $29.86 billion Other non-workers' compensation health insurance: $14.22 billion Workers and their families: $10.38 billion Medicare: $7.16 billion Medicaid: $5.47 billion

He also found that only $21.86 billion in lost productivity costs are paid by workers' compensation insurers, with the remaining $160.68 billion covered by other sources, including workers and their families, the Social Security Disability fund and state disability funds.

"Cost-shifting affects everyone, because we're all paying higher Medicare and income taxes to help cover that 79 percent," said Leigh.

Leigh suggests three changes in current workers' compensation and employee health practices to reduce cost shifting and overall costs and to help ensure workplace safety: Eliminate the stigma often associated with filing workers' compensation claims by openly acknowledging the legitimacy of using workers' compensation insurance for occupational injuries. Encourage more states to adopt single-payer government-managed workers' compensation systems to save administrative costs. Link premiums with company-specific injury experience rather than industry-wide estimates, which would encourage companies to lower premiums by reducing workplace hazards.

"The ultimate goals should be to comprehensively address the way occupational health is managed and establish cultures of safety for workers," said Leigh.

INFORMATION:

James Marcin, a UC Davis professor of pediatrics affiliated with the UC Davis Center for Healthcare Policy, was the co-author of "Workers' Compensation Benefits and Shifting Costs for Occupational Injury and Illness." A copy of the study can be requested by e-mailing Marjory Spraycar at m.spraycar@verizon.net.

Partial funding for the research was provided by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (grants OH008248-01 and U54OH007550).

UC Davis Health System is improving lives and transforming health care by providing excellent patient care, conducting groundbreaking research, fostering innovative, interprofessional education and creating dynamic, productive community partnerships. The academic health system includes one of the country's best medical schools, a 631-bed acute-care teaching hospital, an 800-member physician's practice group and the new Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing. It is home to a National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center, an international neurodevelopmental institute, a stem cell institute and a comprehensive children's hospital. Other nationally prominent centers focus on advancing telemedicine, improving vascular care, facilitating health policy changes, eliminating health disparities and translating research findings into new treatments for patients. Together, they make UC Davis a hub of innovation that is transforming health for all. For more information, visit www.healthsystem.ucdavis.edu.

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Employee Vacation Tracking Made Easy With New EzTimeSheet Software From Halfpricesoft.com

2012-05-28
Employee attendance and vacation tracking should not be an administrative nightmare for HR managers and business owners. Halfpricesoft.com recently updated ezTimeSheet time tracking software with new vacation and leave plan options to give small businesses more versatility when tracking vacation time, sick time and paid time off for employees. "Employee attendance tracking is important for any business and organization; however employee attendance and vacation time tracking can be very time-consuming," explains Dr. Ge, President and Founder of halfpricesoft.com. ...

Tongue analysis software uses ancient Chinese medicine to warn of disease

2012-05-28
COLUMBIA, Mo. — For 5,000 years, the Chinese have used a system of medicine based on the flow and balance of positive and negative energies in the body. In this system, the appearance of the tongue is one of the measures used to classify the overall physical status of the body, or zheng. Now, University of Missouri researchers have developed computer software that combines the ancient practices and modern medicine by providing an automated system for analyzing images of the tongue. "Knowing your zheng classification can serve as a pre-screening tool and help with preventive ...

It's in the genes: Research pinpoints how plants know when to flower

Its in the genes: Research pinpoints how plants know when to flower
2012-05-28
Scientists believe they've pinpointed the last crucial piece of the 80-year-old puzzle of how plants "know" when to flower. Determining the proper time to flower, important if a plant is to reproduce successfully, involves a sequence of molecular events, a plant's circadian clock and sunlight. Understanding how flowering works in the simple plant used in this study – Arabidopsis – should lead to a better understanding of how the same genes work in more complex plants grown as crops such as rice, wheat and barley, according to Takato Imaizumi, a University of Washington ...

Trabasack Returns To The Mobility Roadshow 2012

2012-05-28
The Trabasack team will be returning to the Mobility Roadshow 2012 after three years of steady progress and hard work and their return won't be without a bang, in the form of a brand new product launch exclusive to the roadshow. For their second appearance at the Peterborough based event, Trabasack and their full product range will be joined by a brand new Media Mount, which has already been attracting lots of interest and is an innovative accessory for the products already available from the Leicestershire based company. Media Mount Launch http://www.trabasack.co.uk/Media-mount-launched The ...

Designer Dog Bandana Retailer Features New Line Of Motorcycle Pet Carriers

2012-05-28
Famous online pet boutique, Rockstar Puppy, recently announced it has added new releases of motorcycle dog carriers to its line of designer dog clothes and whimsical accessories. Known as the online source for a personalized dog bandana or cute dog ID tags, Rockstar Puppy has continued to expand its collection with designer dog accessories exclusively designed for motorcycles. "Our extensive collection of dog carriers fit most motorcycle models," said Jessica Auria, owner of Rockstar Puppy. "Several styles are available to compliment the personal tastes ...

PerDM Hosts Annual Golf Tournament at DeVere Carden Park Golf Resort

2012-05-28
DeVere Carden Park, a luxurious country Hotel, Golf Resort and Spa in Cheshire saw Global Provider PerDM host their Annual Golf Tournament last weekend. The popular venue was voted Best 2011 North of England Golf Resort in Today's Golfer Travel Awards. Carden Park was chosen by PerDM as they have used the venue for many conferences and events in the past. "It is a beautiful location in Cheshire and Carden Park has always been wonderful hosts to us in the past so it was an ideal place for us to hold the Golf Tournament," says Ian Attwood, Director at PerDM. PerDM ...

New prostate cancer screening guidelines face a tough sell, study suggests

2012-05-28
Recent recommendations from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) advising elimination of routine prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening for prostate cancer in healthy men are likely to encounter serious pushback from primary care physicians, according to results of a survey by Johns Hopkins investigators. In a survey of 125 primary care doctors, the researchers found that while doctors agreed with older recommendations to curtail routine screening in men over age 75 and among those not expected to live 10 or more years, a large number said they faced significant ...

Dr. Joseph Serra Expands Skill Set In Treating Sleep Apnea

Dr. Joseph Serra Expands Skill Set In Treating Sleep Apnea
2012-05-28
As part of his commitment to staying current in modern advances and technology associated with sleep apnea effects and treatments, Dr. Joe Serra has attended the new obstructive sleep apnea course offered by LVI Global entitled, LVI Sleep - The Physiologic Approach to Treating OSA. The course is designed to assist dentists, such as Dr. Serra, in learning about the relationships between health, sleep breathing disorders and neuromuscular dentistry. The course teaches dentists to better identify, co-manage and refer patients who are suffering from obstructive sleep apnea ...

Proteomic analysis of immunocamouflaged surfaces

Proteomic analysis of immunocamouflaged surfaces
2012-05-28
The transfusion of red blood cells (RBC) is a critical component in the treatment of a number of acute and chronic medical problems. Indeed, approximately 75 million units of whole blood (~34 million liters) are annually collected worldwide for processing and eventual transfusion. Despite this massive collection effort, the need for blood constantly exceeds availability due to a combination of collection, manufacturing, storage and biological (i.e., immunological) issues. The immunological issues can often be the most clinically vexing as the RBC has ~300 blood group antigens ...

New York Construction Accident Lawyer from The Perecman Firm Wins Summary Judgment for Worker Injured in Ladder Fall Accident

2012-05-28
David Perecman and New York construction accident lawyers at The Perecman Firm scored a major victory for an injured construction worker. As importantly, they also advanced the law regarding construction worker protection in their appeal of the Stallone v. Plaza Construction Corp. case (Index No. 105940/08). The Appellate Division, First Department ruled that the plaintiff should have summary judgment on liability under New York Labor Law 240. "We are extremely pleased with the court's decision. Protecting the safety of construction workers on the work site ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Toxic metals linked to impaired growth in infants in Guatemala

Being consistently physically active in adulthood linked to 30–40% lower risk of death

Nerve pain drug gabapentin linked to increased dementia, cognitive impairment risks

Children’s social care involvement common to nearly third of UK mums who died during perinatal period

‘Support, not judgement’: Study explores links between children’s social care involvement and maternal deaths

Ethnic minority and poorer children more likely to die in intensive care

Major progress in fertility preservation after treatment for cancer of the lymphatic system

Fewer complications after additional ultrasound in pregnant women who feel less fetal movement

Environmental impact of common pesticides seriously underestimated

The Milky Way could be teeming with more satellite galaxies than previously thought

New study reveals surprising reproductive secrets of a cricket-hunting parasitoid fly

Media Tip Sheet: Symposia at ESA2025

NSF CAREER Award will power UVA engineer’s research to improve drug purification

Tiny parasitoid flies show how early-life competition shapes adult success

New coating for glass promises energy-saving windows

Green spaces boost children’s cognitive skills and strengthen family well-being

Ancient trees dying faster than expected in Eastern Oregon

Study findings help hone precision of proven CVD risk tool

Most patients with advanced melanoma who received pre-surgical immunotherapy remain alive and disease free four years later

Introducing BioEmu: A generative AI Model that enables high-speed and accurate prediction of protein structural ensembles

Replacing mutated microglia with healthy microglia halts progression of genetic neurological disease in mice and humans

New research shows how tropical plants manage rival insect tenants by giving them separate ‘flats’

Condo-style living helps keep the peace inside these ant plants

Climate change action could dramatically limit rising UK heatwave deaths

Annual heat-related deaths projected to increase significantly due to climate and population change

Researchers discover new way cells protect themselves from damage

Rivers choose their path based on erosion — a discovery that could transform flood planning and restoration

New discovery reveals dopamine operates with surgical precision, not as a broad signal

New AI tool gives a helping hand to x ray diagnosis

New Leicester study reveals hidden heart risks in women with Type 2 Diabetes

[Press-News.org] Most occupational injury and illness costs are paid by the government and private payers