The workers compensation industry is poised to see a pivotal shift in pharmaceutical spending, as 2023 marked the first time in recent history that opioid dispensing didn’t land in the top spot of therapeutic classes, according to the 2024 Enlytened Trends Report released Tuesday by Enlyte LLC.
The annual report, which assesses top issues faced by the property and casualty insurance industry, also highlighted medical cost and inflation trends in workers compensation along with physician and provider shortages.
On the drug front, topicals in 2023 represented 18.5% of total workers comp drug costs compared with 15.4% for opioids, the report states. Opioids, meanwhile, remain the top category prescribed, and researchers say employees who are prescribed opioids can be 11 to 14 times more likely to experience chronic work loss and have 251% longer disability.
The report highlighted medical inflation trends on the state and national levels, noting that physician charges per procedure have increased by 12% since 2017. On the state level, high-volume workers comp jurisdictions including New York have worked to contain costs through mechanisms like workers comp fee schedules.
The trends report shows that workers comp is expected to continue facing three general challenges: price opportunists, specialty medications and physician dispensing.
Researchers are also keeping an eye on regulatory and compliance trends, as well as legal decisions and legislative changes, that may affect the workers comp industry.