From the Editor: The Biggest Issue Facing Workers' Comp

As tough as staffing is throughout the insurance industry, the world of workers' comp has things doubly bad -- it has to deal not only with its own staffing issues but those of its clients. 

As Mark Walls, vice president of client engagement at Safety National, explains in this month's interview, many companies are having to ask employees to do more to cover for gaps in staffing. Companies are also being less rigorous about pre-employment physicals and may rush people into action. The risk of injury is rising as a result.

At the same time, workers' comp carriers and third-party administrators are having to deal with their own shortages of adjusters, nurse care managers and so on, while dealing with caregivers that are struggling to line up enough doctors and nurses.

The result? Not pretty.

There's no easy answer, but carriers and TPAs are finding that they are more likely to attract and retain talent if they provide flexibility by letting people do more work at home. 

Work-from-home creates its own set of problems, though, for all employers. I'll leave it to Mark in his interview to explain the subtleties, but suffice it to say here that it's important to designate an area for work in the home. Otherwise, any activity at any time in any spot in the house could be interpreted as being related to work, meaning that any injury could produce a claim. 

The good news is that the long-term trends in workers' comp remain positive, as carriers and employers keep making work environments safer. Automation will also reduce risk. 

But combined ratios have climbed from perhaps 85% to 100% or more, and any uptick in claims and expenses would send them even higher. So, the path ahead may be bumpy for a while.

Cheers,
Paul 

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