Apparently Washington wasn’t the only state to make significant changes to its workers’ compensation system this year.  An article in Stateline today discusses cost-cutting measures that were enacted in several states.  The article also includes a handy sidebar with the key changes made in Montana, Illinois, Oklahoma, Washington, Kansas, and North Carolina.

Like Washington, Montana has a highly costly workers’ compensation system. In 2008, Washington ranked 2nd in benefits paid per covered worker ($778.36); Montana ranked 5th ($595.88).  Washington ranked 3rd in benefits paid as a percent of covered wages (1.69 percent); Montana ranked 2nd (1.83 percent).

The article notes that this year’s reforms in Montana have already been effective:

Insurers in the state have lowered premiums by 20 percent, and a further reduction of 10 to 15 percent is expected within the next five years. The new law shortens the period in which workers can receive medical benefits, and specifies which doctors they can see and how well those doctors are compensated. If an employee is injured on a break while away from the workplace, the employer is no longer likely to be on the hook for lost wages and medical expenses.

In Washington, changes made by the legislature included allowing a settlement agreement option for certain workers and creating a medical provider network.  (For more on this year’s reforms in Washington, see here; and for other briefs on workers’ compensation, see here, here, and here.)  It remains to be seen how the changes made in Washington will play out, but we expect that they will help reduce the costliness of our system.