A recently released study looked at how quickly people see a doctor and return to work in a couple of different situations: those who have health insurance for non-work-related injuries or illness compared and contrasted with employees who suffer a work-related injury.
The Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) released the new study titled “Health Insurance and Outcomes of Injured Workers.”
The president and CEO of the nonprofit WCRI said, “While workers are covered by workers’ compensation when they sustain a work-related injury, whether they have health insurance as well as the source of that insurance can predict how quickly they see a doctor and return to work, among other postinjury outcomes.”
The study demonstrates that workers with health insurance through their employer went to doctors for evaluation quicker than those injured workers without health insurance. They also had slightly better outcomes in recovery of their health and functioning, WCRI reported.
Other results of the study include the following: Workers with employer-sponsored health insurance returned to work sooner and after their returns had less time before they resumed substantial duties. Those with insurance also expressed to researchers a greater degree of satisfaction with the health care provider.
For employers, perhaps the most significant finding in the study was that those with employer-sponsored health insurance had “lower rates of hiring an attorney to help them navigate their workers’ compensation claim.”
Of course, for those workers who are injured on the job and then denied Georgia workers’ compensation benefits, it makes sense to pursue an appeal with the help of an experienced Jonesboro workers’ comp lawyer.