Changing your Workers’ Compensation Insurance provider will cost money and time. Not only will you need to spend time researching your options, but you will also probably end up spending more time answering employees’ questions. One way to save money on Workers’ Compensation expenses is to develop a strong long-term relationship with your third-party administrator (TPA).
A competent TPA can help lower your worker's comp insurance cost
The best TPAs have strong medical management skills that allow them to control the medical cost of your claims and work in conjunction with workers’ compensation adjusters.
Before hiring a TPA, ask which of the following techniques they use to control medical costs:
- Telephonic nurse case mangers (TCM) or Field nurse case managers (FCM) – experienced nurses help coordinate and manage the medical care of an injured employee, including consulting with physicians; providing frequent updates to the adjuster; and facilitating communicate between the employee, employer, and physician.
- Senior nurse reviews – a highly experienced nurse who provides continuous oversight of medical care, identifying recovery obstacles early in the claim.
- Utilization reviews – provides an independent confirmation that medical services are necessary with a pre-certification review, a concurrent review, and/or a retrospective review.
- Medical bill reviews – reviews and verifies the accuracy of the diagnostic codes and charges.
- Prescription management – helps ensure the best prices and the prevention of overutilization of drugs.
- Physician review – If an injured worker isn’t responding to medical care within the normal recovery time, a specialist can evaluate and document the past, current , and future medical treatments.
- On-site clinics – a medical clinic located on an employers’ worksite can reduce the cost of medical care for both personal and work-related injuries and illnesses.
- Injury triage – a triage nurse evaluates the injured employee’s needs and directs them to the most appropriate medical providers within the network.
- Wellness programs – a company sponsored wellness program lowers the cost of health insurance and the cost of workers’ compensation costs, lowers absenteeism, and increases productivity.
- Preferred provider networks – a network of doctors, hospitals, diagnostic facilities, and other medical providers that have agreed to provide medical services at a reduced cost to injured employees covered by workers’ compensation insurance.
Get educated and lower your Workers Comp costs!
- Become more informed about the services offered by your claims administrator. Ask for samples of reports and deliverability’s. Read through their brochures and ask lots of questions.
- Visit one or two of their claims offices and learn their processes. Find out if adjusters have backup or clerical assistance. Watch the process as a medical bill enters the system through to the time that it is paid. You’ll have a better understanding and appreciation of how they work and how you can work with them more efficiently.
- Educate your adjusters on your business. Invite them to come in and see what your business does, the kinds of jobs and skills your employees have. This will help them understand better how an injury can occur. This may also allow them to offer more possible transitional duties for injured workers.
Need help finding a good TPA?
Amercian Insuring Group can help you find the right TPA for your organization. We can also help you find the best Workers Compensation Insurance coverage. That's because as independent agents, we're free to shop among competing insurance providers to find the best workers comp insurance to meet your unique needs at the best price.
Give us a call at (800)947-1270 or (610)775-3848 or click here to contact us.
