The significance of age on job injury frequency has diminished, suggesting that age may not play an important role in future frequency trends for workers' compensation, a new study has found.
The findings were reported by the Boca Raton, Fla.-based National Council on Compensation Insurance, which reported that on average, younger workers have more frequent comp injury claims, while older workers get hurt less but require more expensive care when they do.
NCCI's report–"Age as a Driver of Frequency and Severity"–follows NCCI research in 2005 that found workers' comp medical cost claims that develop into costlier lost-time claims with indemnity payments most often involve older employees.
In the latest report, other key findings included:
o Carpal tunnel syndrome and injuries to the lower back are among the top-10 diagnoses for workers of all ages.
o The relationship between age and claim severities has remained essentially unchanged.
o A significant portion of the differences in claim severities between younger and older workers were accounted for by other factors correlated with age–average wages, claim durations, lump-sum payments, injury diagnoses, and number of medical treatments.
o Differences in wages and claim durations accounted for a majority of the difference in indemnity severities between younger and older workers.
o With respect to medical severities, older workers experience relatively more higher-cost injuries, where the most notable differences in diagnoses involve injuries to the joints–rotator cuff and knees–which were more commonly experienced by workers aged 45-64, and sprains of the ankle, which were more commonly experienced by workers aged 20-34.
o Differences in the types of injuries accounted for a modest portion–about one-quarter–of the difference in medical severities between younger and older workers.
o The key driver explaining about 70 percent of the difference in medical claim severities between younger and older workers is the markedly higher number and different mix of treatments within a diagnosis.
o The remaining portion–less than 10 percent–seems to be due to a somewhat more costly mix of treatments for older workers as reflected in small differences in the average prices of categories of medical services.
o The greater number and different mix of treatments also contribute to the longer duration of indemnity payments for older workers.
o In terms of trends in loss costs, Baby Boomers made an impact historically, but the major impact of an aging workforce has likely already occurred.
According to NCCI charts, in 1994 the yearly percentage of non-fatal injury incidence was 1.5 for workers in the 20-24 age range, compared with .7 percent for those 55-64.
By 2002 the spread diminished to 1.2 percent for the younger workers and .9 for the older segment.
Injury rates for the category listed as managerial–professional specialty have historically been low and remained flat from 1994 to 1999, but in every other job category there were decreases during that period, NCCI said.
For that period, NCCI figures also indicate that that the amount of high-risk jobs that employed younger workers decreased 2 percent, while the proportion of younger workers in the managerial-professional specialty category increased two points to 16 percent.
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