Injectable therapies used in four in 10 lost-time claims, WCRI finds

Roughly 4 in 10 lost-time employees compensation claims concerned not less than one injectable drug or process inside 24 months of harm, and prices for self-administered medication, resembling these use for weight reduction, doubled in six years, in keeping with a brand new examine by the Employees Compensation Analysis Institute.

The report examines injectable therapies throughout 28 states, together with each clinician-administered procedures — resembling epidural steroid injections, nerve blocks and joint injections — and self-administered injectable medicines. Waltham, Massachusetts-based WCRI discovered that injectable therapies characterize a major and rising share of medical spending in employees compensation claims.

Use and prices different broadly by state, with a excessive of $2,404 in Louisiana and a low of $362 in California, pushed by variations in charge schedules, utilization administration and the combination of therapies. Injectable therapies usually carried increased common funds per declare than many different classes of medical care, reflecting each their complexity and value, WCRI stated.

The examine additionally discovered a altering mixture of injectable therapies. Whereas conventional pain-management injections stay frequent, utilization is increasing for newer and higher-cost choices, together with biologic medication and regenerative therapies resembling platelet-rich plasma. These therapies, although nonetheless utilized in a smaller share of claims, accounted for a disproportionate share of injectable spending.

As well as, self-administered injectable medicines — together with biologics used for migraine prevention and GLP-1 medication for diabetes — have grown quickly lately, contributing to rising pharmacy prices in employees compensation. The examine discovered funds for self-administered medication made up 15% of injectable prices in 2024, up from 7% in 2018.

WCRI stated the findings set up a baseline for monitoring how injectable therapies have an effect on medical prices, therapy pathways and declare outcomes as their use continues to evolve.