Workers’ compensation programs are continually seeking ways to provide best in class service to their clients and injured employees. This requires program administrators to seek innovative ideas to keep the competitive edge. One tool to do so is to implement baseline testing for employees. This new trend is showing an immediate reduction in program costs while keeping the necessary balance required by workers’ compensation mandates.
What is Baseline Testing?
“Baseline testing” is a series of physical and cognitive tests used to measure an employee’s condition(s) prior to becoming employed with a company. These tests measure a variety of physical and musculoskeletal factors that establish where some is at before employment. It is similar to tests used for athletes who might be subjected to traumatic brain injury and concussions through sports. The baseline can then be used in a variety of circumstances:
- Primary liability determinations following receipt of the claim;
- Measuring the progress an injured worker is making toward full recovery;
- Evaluating an employee’s condition as part of an independent medical examination; and
- Permanency and total disability rating.
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Interested stakeholders in workers’ compensation programs seeking to use baseline testing should do so only after seeking competent legal counsel. Such testing may be illegal in some instances given state and federal laws protecting employees against discrimination. In most instances, such testing is only allowed as part of a pre-employment physical.
Effectively Using Baseline Testing
Pre-employment baseline testing can come into play to establish an employee’s status for future use in a variety of different settings. These test results or baselines are then stored in a protected environment to guard against the unauthorized disclosure of protected health information (PHI). If an injury takes place or is alleged, it can then be used when examination or defending a workers’ compensation claim:
- Specific incident injuries. These types of injuries are easy to identify given the nature of the event. Such incidents can include slip/falls, bone breaks, etc. Baseline testing is useful in these incidents as it can identify when the employee has reached the end of their healing period of maximum medical improvement. This testing is especially important in determining the etiology of soft tissues injuries, which impact most workers’ compensation programs as cost drivers.
- Repetitive trauma injuries. These injuries are often subject to frequent litigation as the injuries takes place over a period of time and not a specific event. By having a baseline for the impacted employee, medical experts are able to identify pre-existing medical conditions and determine if the work-related activity in question in new, or if the underlying condition has been subject to acceleration or aggravation.
- Psychological and psychiatric claims. Mental injuries are also significant cost drivers within the workers’ compensation system. This can be due to the fact most Americans are not comfortable about receiving the care they need. If baseline testing is performed that includes cognitive and other mental health based surveys, it can assist in the defense of a costly claim.
Implementing Baseline Testing
A significant barrier to implementing an effective baseline testing program is the perceived front-end cost. Attitudes are changing about this issue as studies continue to show its long-term benefit in driving down workers’ compensation costs. When it is fully implemented, it can also help interested stakeholders serve their employees and meet their financial objectives.
Author Michael Stack, Principal, COMPClub, Amaxx LLC. He is an expert in workers compensation cost containment systems and helps employers reduce their work comp costs by 20% to 50%. He works as a consultant to large and mid-market clients, is co-author of Your Ultimate Guide To Mastering Workers Comp Costs, a comprehensive step-by-step manual of cost containment strategies based on hands-on field experience, and is founder of COMPClub, an exclusive member training program on workers compensation cost containment best practices. Through these platforms he is in the trenches on a working together with clients to implement and define best practices, which allows him to continuously be at the forefront of innovation and thought leadership in workers’ compensation cost containment. Contact: mstack@reduceyourworkerscomp.com.
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Do not use this information without independent verification. All state laws vary. You should consult with your insurance broker, attorney, or qualified professional.
