Early intervention in low back disability among coal miners in West Virginia: negative findings

Article Abstract:

The need to contain costs is receiving much attention in the field of workers' compensation. The costs of both medical treatment and disability benefits are rising rapidly. Consequently, injury prevention and early treatment of workers' injuries may play an important role in cost containment. To determine if it reduced the costs of workers' compensation, an early intervention (treatment) approach was tested among West Virginia coal miners who sustained work-related back injuries. The study, conducted in 1985 and 1986, included 284 cases of back injury; 121 workers received early intervention and 163 did not (control group). Early intervention consisted of starting treatment and rehabilitation within two weeks of the injury. The results revealed that the costs of disability payments and days missed from work were not reduced by the intervention and, in fact, the overall cost with the intervention was higher than without it (because of the additional cost of the intervention itself). There was no difference between the intervention and control groups in terms of litigation costs, permanent partial disability payments, number of workers hospitalized, or ability to resume work. In conclusion, this early intervention program for treating back injuries among coal miners did not reduce medical costs, workers' compensation or prevent disability. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Health aspects, Care and treatment, Workplace accidents, Coal miners

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The cost of compensable low back pain

Article Abstract:

The various costs of low back pain can be classified as either direct costs, such as medical charges and reimbursement of lost wages, or indirect costs, such as claim processing, lost production time, and training of replacement workers. In order to determine the current cost per case of compensable low back pain in the United States, an analysis was made of the claims of one insurance company during 1986. The average or mean cost per case was $6,807; the median cost, which is the figure situated in the middle of the range, was $391. The wide disparity between the mean and median reflects the study's finding that 25 percent of the cases accounted for 95 percent of the costs. Medical costs represented 31.5 percent of the total cost, and indemnity costs represented 67.2 percent. The estimated total cost of compensable low back pain cases in the United States in 1986 was $11.1 billion. In light of this high cost, measures to control the incidence of low back pain in the work place may well be cost-effective. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Research, Statistics, Medical care, Cost of, Health care costs, Backache, Back pain

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