Each year I make a list of predictions -- a dangerous habit to be sure, but one I can't seem to break.

Health care reform will change much of the medical services delivery system as we know it, but its impact on workers' compensation, while likely significant, will be indirect and accidental--as well as both positive and negative.

We don't know if health insurance reform is going to pass--or if it does, what form it will take, whether it will provide for universal coverage, how it will be funded, or if there will be a public plan option.

The last five years have been good ones for Florida's employers. Workers' compensation costs are down dramatically, claim frequency continues to drop, and premiums have followed the same trajectory.

The good news is that drug cost inflation in workers' compensation has moderated considerably in recent years. The bad news is that this moderation is not industry-wide, but rather favors those

Getting A Grip On Rising WC Drug CostsBrand-names over generics, big-time marketing programs boost expensesAsk most anyone in workers' compensation claims or managed care ...