Internet expert system saves 54% on workers' comp cost-The Self Insurer
This article is on pages 28-30 of the July, 2013 issue of THE SELF-INSURER, authored by Dick Goff, past president of The Self Insurance Institute of America. It tells how Johns Hopkins Hospital saved 54% on its workers' comp bill, by using only Johns Hopkins doctors to evaluate their workers' comp claimants from the hospital. The article describes why 40%-67% of chronic pain patients are misdiagnosed, and how two Internet questionnaires generate diagnoses with a 96% correlation with Johns Hopkins Hospital staff, resulting in cost savings between $20,000 to $175,000 for cases out of work for more than three months. Published outcome studies document a 45% reduction in doctor visits, and 90% reduction in narcotic use, while the return to work rate was 5 times higher than what was reported by insurance carriers for the same group of patients.
