The Impact of Provider Choice on Workers' Compensation Costs and Outcomes

David Neumark, Peter S. Barth, Richard Victor

NBER Working Paper No. 11855
Issued in December 2005
NBER Program(s):   LS

We study how provider choice in workers' compensation cases affects costs and outcomes. When employees choose the provider, costs are higher and return-to-work outcomes are worse, while physical recovery is the same although satisfaction with medical care is higher. The higher costs and worse return-to-work outcomes associated with employee choice arise largely when employees selected a new provider, rather than a provider with whom the worker had a pre-existing relationship. The findings lend some support to recent policy changes limiting workers' ability to choose a provider with whom they do not have a prior relationship.

(289 K)

Published: Neumark, David, Peter Barth, and Richard Victor. “The Impact of Provider Choice on Workers’ Compensation Costs and Outcomes,” Industrial and Labor Relations Review (2007): 121-42.

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