At the 2019 WCRI Annual Conference a session discussed efforts in Washington State and Washington DC to promote return to work following a work injury. The speakers were: Moderator: Dr. John W. Ruser, WCRI Speakers: Ms. Jennifer Sheehy, U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) Prof. Tom Wickizer, University of Washington School […]

At the 2019 WCRI Annual Conference, a session discussed a variety of research and efforts relating to the opioid epidemic. Moderator: Mr. Tim Hassett-Salley, WCRI Speakers: Dr. Vennela Thumula, WCRI Dr. Letitia Davis, Massachusetts Department of Public Health Ms. Jacqueline Kurth, Industrial Commission of Arizona Mr. Jason Porter, Industrial Commission of Arizona WCRI Research Older […]

At the 2019 WCRI Annual Conference, Dr. John W. Ruser, WCRI and Prof. Alan Kruegar, Princeton University, kicked off the conference with a keynote focused on the opioid epidemic, participation in the US labor force, and the state of the US economy. Opioid Epidemic The opioid overdose rate in the US has been steadily climbing since […]

At the 2018 WCRI Annual Research & Issues Conference a panel discussed how the world of work is changing. The panel included: Judge David Langham, Florida Deputy Chief Judge of Compensation Claims Steven Tolman, President Massachusetts AFL-CIO Denise Zoe Algire, Albertsons Companies Charlie Kingdollar, Gen Re John Ruser, WCRI (moderator) Question: What do you think […]

At the 2018 WCRI Annual Issues & Research Conference, Dr. David Bradford from the Department of Public Administration and Policy at the University of Georgia discussed the impact state marijuana laws have on prescription drug spending. The question is, what has been the effect of legalizing medical marijuana on the use of FDA approved pain […]

At the 2018 WCRI Annual Research & Issues Conference a panel presented findings from several different WCRI studies. Please note, some of these findings are preliminary, and therefore, subject to change. Then panel included: Ramona Tanabe, WCRI Evelina Radeva, WCRI Rebecca Yang, WCRI Carol Telles, WCRI Tennessee The WCRI study measured the impact of the […]

At the 2018 WCRI Annual Issues & Research Conference, a panel discussed the impact of opioids and prescription drugs on the workplace. The panel included: Dr Bogdan Savych, WCRI Jane Terry, National Safety Council Joan Vincenz, United Airlines WCRI studies have long shown the widespread use of opioids in workers’ compensation. A recent WCRI study […]

At the WCRI Annual Issues & Research Conference Dr Richard Victor, former CEO of WCRI and currently a senior fellow with Sedgwick Institute, discussed his views of workers’ compensation in the future. The workers’ compensation system was a compromise between labor and business designed to provide no fault benefits in an environment that gave exclusive […]

At the 2018 WCRI Annual Issues & Research Conference, Terrence Welsh MD, Chief Medical Officer for the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation discussed their efforts to decrease inappropriate opioid prescribing in Ohio. Ohio has a monopolistic state fund, meaning if you are not self-insured you are insured by the state. Pharmacy management is done in-house. […]

At the WCRI Annual Issues & Research Conference, Randall Lea MD from Alice Peck Day Hospital discussed value-based care. They have been working on a study of value-based care and the workers’ compensation industry. Value-based care has been gaining traction on the group health side but not in workers’ compensation. Study participants included medical providers, […]