Workers Compensation Program Review FY09-13

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Charleston Achieving Excellence: Vision 2016

Workers Compensation Program Review FY09-13

Risk Safety and Environmental Management

Dana S. Enck, Director

December 9, 2013

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Objectives of this presentation

• Provide a 5-year snapshot of claim trends:

financial, occupational and causal

• Identify cost drivers, risk gaps and subsequent

mitigations

• Outline future strategies for targeting

identified risk gaps, reducing the total cost of

risk for the District

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Total reports of injury have decreased

in 5 years

376 ₃₈₂ 343 336 278 200 250 300 350 400 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Total Claims Entire District

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Total Workers Comp Program

Expenditures

$3,099,447 $3,392,956 $2,919,530 $2,360,811 $3,043,735 $2,000,000.00 $2,200,000.00 $2,400,000.00 $2,600,000.00 $2,800,000.00 $3,000,000.00 $3,200,000.00 $3,400,000.00 $3,600,000.00

(5)

What would we rather have in FY15?

• One step for every employee

–

$3.5 million

• 1% COLA

–

$2.4 million

• With last year’s expenditures, we could have instead

employed 46 teachers

FY09 FY10 FY11 FY12 FY13

(6)

Expense Costs for FY09-13

$548,124.00 $308,442.00 $270,974.00 $284,900.00 $266,344.00 $- $100,000.00 $200,000.00 $300,000.00 $400,000.00 $500,000.00 $600,000.00 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Legal expenses, filing fees,

(7)

Medical Expenditures FY09-13

$2,362,858.00 $1,392,173.00 $1,196,655.00 $1,035,901.00 $1,233,222.00 $- $500,000.00 $1,000,000.00 $1,500,000.00 $2,000,000.00 $2,500,000.00 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

(8)

Settlement Costs FY09-13

$390,606.00 $1,351,156.00 $716,708.00 $720,785.00 $1,396,561.00 $- $200,000.00 $400,000.00 $600,000.00 $800,000.00 $1,000,000.00 $1,200,000.00 $1,400,000.00 $1,600,000.00 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

(9)

The same knee injury to different

people…

Position Age Comp Rate % disability Settlement

Maintenance 63 $321.20 10% $6,263

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Cost of Lost Time FY09-13

$737,203.00 $328,987.00 $306,807.00 $153,279.00 $144,106.00 $- $100,000.00 $200,000.00 $300,000.00 $400,000.00 $500,000.00 $600,000.00 $700,000.00 $800,000.00 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

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Reports of injury have decreased by

both severity and total

300 ₂₈₆ 261 ₂₄₇ 213 76 ₉₆ 82 ₈₉ 65 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

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Total Number and Type of Days Lost

From Work

0 500 1,000 1,500 2,000 2,500 3,000 3,500 4,000 4,500 5,000 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 Partial Days Full Days

(13)

Actions Resulting in Reduced Lost Time

• Aggressive Return to Work Program based on

best practices

–

Temporary placements to enhance student

achievement and facilities

–

Permanent placements in a new career, if available

and qualified

• Relationship development with the injured

worker

• Close contact with medical providers via district

representatives and nurse case manager

(14)

Who has claims?

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30%

Number of Claims By Occupation

% of Occupation With a Claim

1046 210 180 82 56 34 6 0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200

All numbers are

(15)

Total Incurred Cost of Claims for

FY09-13 by Job Class

$0.00 $1,000,000.00 $2,000,000.00 $3,000,000.00 $4,000,000.00 $5,000,000.00 $6,000,000.00

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Maintenance – FY09-13

• Claimants Range in Age From 50-64

–

Average is 54 years old

• Total cost incurred is $943,335

(17)

11

24

8

37 Falls _{Strains / Lifting}

Motor Vehicle Other

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Financial Impact of Injury Types

FY09-13 - Maintenance

$272,831.00 $461,703.00 $160,585.00 $48,026.00 Falls Strains / Lifting Motor Vehicle Other

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Food Service – 2009-2013

• Claimants range in age from 23-80

–

Average is 54 years old

• Total Cost Incurred $1,329,867

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Food Service Injury Types FY09-13

42 40 58 Burns Falls Strains / Overexertion

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Financial Impact of Injury Types

FY09-13– Food Service

$46,293.00

$840,766.00

$486,736.00 _Burns

Falls

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Teacher Assistants – FY09-13

• Claimants range in age from 20-72

–

Average is 50 years old

• Total cost incurred $1,374,503

(23)

Teacher Assistant Injury Types FY09-13

69 51 27 42 Falls Strains / Overexertion Assault Struck By

(24)

Financial Impact of Injury Types

FY09-13 – Teacher Assistant

$536,987.00 $395,884.00 $19,083.00 $403,566.00 _Falls Strains / Overexertion Assault Struck By

(25)

Rolled up….. FY09-13

• Most Injured Body Part

–

Backs and Necks (17)

• Most Expensive Body Part

–

Backs and Necks ($279,224)

• Most Types (specific)

–

Strains (24)

• Most Expensive Type

–

Strains ($461,703)

• Most Injured Body Part

–

Hands (36)

• Most Expensive Body Part

–

Backs and Necks ($577,142)

• Most Types (specific)

–

Strains (58)

• Most Expensive Type

–

Falls ($840,766)

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Rolled up…. FY09-13

• Most Injured Body Part

–

Backs and Necks (32)

–

Hands (32)

• Most Expensive Body Part

–

Backs and Necks ($287,311)

• Most Types (specific)

–

Falls (69)

• Most Expensive Type

–

Falls ($536,987)

(27)

Rolled up… FY09-13 – Entire District

• Most Injured Body Part

–

Backs and Necks

• Most Expensive Body Part

–

Backs and Necks ($2,155,597)

• Most Types

–

Falls (511)

–

Strains (329)

• Most Expensive Type

–

Falls ($5,539,939)

–

Strains ($2,328,322)

(28)

Mitigation Programs in Place

• Training

–

Annually, all employees are required to complete

lifting / back safety OR slip and fall awareness online

courses

–

Presentations semi-annually to food service and

maintenance on various safety topics

–

1-1 consultations post-injury to investigate for

possible subrogation and educate the school staff

• Capital Program

–

Involved in the selection of walking surfaces and

placements of fixtures, features and furniture

(29)

• Interviews

–

Post-accident, a staff member interviews the

injured worker to check for quick fixes and ideas

for prevention

• Aggressive return to work programs

–

The less time the injured worker is out of work,

the less costly the claim is and the more likely the

worker is to return

• Building relationships with the Injured Worker

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Total Cost of Workers Compensation

Risk – FY13 only

Expense Amount

Staff salary and benefits

1.0 Technician, 0.5 Director, 0.5 Secretary, 0.25 Manager

$150,105

Self-Insurance tax $87,995

Second Injury Fund assessment $205,675

Excess retention insurance premium (for

claims exceeding $700,000) $124,587

Third party administration $115,000

Medical, expenses, lost time and

permanency awards $3,043,735

(31)

Challenges in the workers

compensation program

• Limitations in returning to work result in an

automatic award of 500 week of wages with

lifetime medical treatment

–

Injured workers do not qualify for a new career in

the District due to:

• Educational requirements

(32)

Challenges in the workers

compensation program

• Medical practitioners and the Workers

Compensation Commission generally favor the

Injured Worker to the expense of the Employer

–

Affects medical costs, extent of treatment and time

lost from work

• A high percentage of our injured workers seek

legal representation

–

134 injured workers were represented from FY09-13

–

District has spent $810,583 in legal fees from FY09-13

(33)

Challenges in the workers

compensation program

• Program resources are disproportionally focused

on post-injury

–

Training, inspections and development of a safety

culture are best practices

–

Managing the program is one Technician and portions

of a Secretary and Director, in addition to a Third Party

Manager

–

Requires a lot of coordination among departments,

document gathering for attorneys (both sides), and

follow up. Many administrative tasks required with

data entry.

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Goals for an optimized workers

compensation program

• Pre-employment, post-offer and ongoing physical

testing

• Wellness programs specifically targeting obesity

and high risk health conditions in individuals

• Post-accident, mandated drug testing

–

Advised that this would be challenged in court

• Exit strategy for employees who would like to

retire, but can’t / don’t

• Continuing education for laborers - to be able to

transition into lower risk careers

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• More district-wide camera surveillance to

document the incident and determine fault

• Outsourcing where it makes sense through

careful analysis

–

Day porter workers compensation costs

• $119,611 – FY09

• $17,619 – FY10

• $22,285 – FY11

Goals for an optimized workers

compensation program

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What can this buy in FY14?

• One step for every employee

–

$3.5 million

• 1% COLA

–

$2.4 million

• With last year’s expenditures, we could have instead

employed 46 teachers

FY09 FY10 FY11 FY12 FY13

(37)