Finally, California ranked third in incurred medical benefits per indemnity claim, with costs that were over 70% higher than the median state. SB 863 focused on reducing frictional costs to the system caused by medical treatment and billing disputes. It did nothing to change the physician behaviors that continue to drive medical costs higher. According to WCRI and CCWC research, nearly half of all pharmacy prescriptions were physician-dispensed, and prescriptions for Schedule II and Schedule III opioid pain medications have continued to rise.

Employers looking to open a new manufacturing or distribution facility are looking at comparisons between different state workers' compensation systems, and other states are using workers' comp reform to make their states more attractive to businesses and job growth.

My hope is that the WCIRB report serves as a starting point for California to compare itself to other states when evaluating its workers' compensation system and where reform is needed. We need to move past the idea that things are just done differently in California because that is the way it has always been.

Finally, the WCIRB study provides a great lead-in for the California Workers' Compensation & Risk Conference, set for Sept. 10-12 in Dana Point, Calif. Check out the conference agenda HERE. I will be moderating the opening panel at this conference, which features a variety of stakeholders debating the impact of SB 863 and offering suggestions for improving California's workers' compensation system.