Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.

 

Justin Smulison interviews Raji H. Chadarevian, Executive Director, Actuarial Research , the National Council of Compensation Insurance, or NCCI, about opioid use and related risks for injured workers. Raji and Justin talk about the statistics. The good news is that through the joint efforts of insurers, the NCCI, prescribing physicians, pharmacies, and employers, the utilization of opioids for pain management in injured workers, while appropriate in some cases, has decreased sharply in the last eight years, and continuing efforts to find alternative pain management systems should keep that trend going.

 

Listen in for more information about recovery awareness, and what your company can do to help injured workers avoid opioid addiction.

Key Takeaways:

[:01] About RIMS.

[:14] RISKWORLD 2025 will take place in Chicago, Illinois from May 4th through May 7th. The call for submissions is now open through August 27th. A link to the submission form is in this episode’s show notes.

[:30] Virtual Workshops! Applying and Integrating ERM is back and it will be hosted by Elise Farnham on September 25th and 25th and also on December 4th and 5th.

[:56] On August 29th, Pat Saporito returns to discuss Optimizing Risk Management with Artificial Intelligence.

[1:05 ] On October 9th and 10th, Chris Hansen returns to deliver Fundamentals of Insurance. Other dates for the Fall and the Winter are available on the virtual workshops calendar at RIMS.org/virtualworkshops.

[1:24 ] RIMS-CRMP Prep Courses! On September 10th and 11th, the RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep will be held with NAIT. There is another RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep on September 12th and 13th.

[1:38 ] The next RIMS-CRMP-FED Exam Prep course will be hosted along with George Mason University on December 3rd through 5th, 2024. Links to these courses can be found on the Certification Page of RIMS.org and in this episode’s show notes.

[1:53 ] Events! We’ve got the DFW RIMS 2024 Fall Conference and Spa Event happening on September 19th in Irving, Texas. Learn more about that event in Episode 299, which features an interview with the Texas State Office of Risk Management.

[2:11 ] Also on September 19th is the RIMS Chicago Chapter’s Chicagoland Risk Forum 2024. Register at ChicagolandRiskForum.org.

[2:21 ] Registration opened for the RIMS Canada Conference 2024 which will be held from October 6th through the 9th in Vancouver. Visit RIMSCanadaConference.ca to register.

[2:33 ] Registration is also open for the RIMS Western Regional, which will be held from September 29th through October 1st at the Sun River Resort in Oregon. Register at RIMSWesternRegional.com.

[2:48 ] We want you to join us in Boston on November 18th and 19th for the RIMS ERM Conference 2024. The agenda is live. The keynote will be announced soon. We want to see you there! A link is in this episode’s show notes.

[3:04 ] The nominations are now open for the RIMS ERM Award of Distinction 2024. Nominations are due August 30th. A link to the nomination form is in this episode’s show notes.

[3:16 ] If you or someone you know manages an ERM program that delivers the goods, we want to hear about it. A link is in this episode’s show notes. All RIMS regional conference information can be found on the Events page at RIMS.org.

[3:32 ] The Interview! With National Recovery Month in September, and National Opioid Awareness Day, September 21st, I wanted to shine a light on opioid addiction and Workers’ Compensation claims with new data about opioid abuse and how it impacts the workplace.

[4:05 ] This is a critical risk and I wanted to speak with someone who can tell the story about the data, so I reached out to Raji Chadarevian, the Executive Director for Actuarial Research  at the National Council of Compensation Insurance, or NCCI.

[4:24 ] He has the insight and perspective on the new data that’s being released, so let’s hear all about it! Raji Chadarevian, welcome to RIMScast!

[5:03 ] Raji states that the NCCI celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2023. The mission of NCCI is to help foster a healthy workers’ compensation system. It’s an advisory agency for 38 states and the District of Columbia, serving as a comprehensive source for all things workers’ comp.

[5:47 ] Raji explains that as an advisory organization, the NCCI provides ratings and statistical advisory insights to the industry, as a whole. It also collects a variety of data.

[6:05 ] Raji is the Executive Director of Research at NCCI. He tells the story behind the numbers. The brainiacs do the research and help him tell the story.

[6:47 ] NCCI collects data representing $30 million in workers’ comp premium for just under four million policies a year, six million employer risk reports with detailed information about premiums, claims, and 10 million transactions with detailed information on lost-time claims.

[7:17 ] NCCI collects data on 52 million payments to medical providers for claims every year. The Medical Data Call, where NCCI collects this information, started in 2010. It contains meaningful information to understand the experience of the injured worker throughout the recovery process.

[8:01 ] Mapping the medical data, NCCI gets to understand the medical services provided, where they are provided, by what provider, and for what purpose. The data provides details of drugs prescribed and where they are dispensed, to understand the use of opioids in workers’ comp.

[8:41 ] Managing pain is a big part of the recovery for workers’ comp injuries. Over the years, NCCI has published opioid use for some 40 states where it collects medical data. This data details precise utilization trends, the types of narcotics used, and the frequency of use.

[9:18 ] The data shows carriers that cover workers’ comp for employers are able to compare their experience in any one jurisdiction to statewide trends and act on that intelligence to manage their pharmacy experience.

[9:45 ] In the last eight years, there has been a huge change in opioid prescribing in workers’ comp. We’ve seen a significant decrease. The NCCI data shows that in the last eight years, opioid use in the year after an injury has decreased from 42% of lost time claims to 16%.

[11:14 ] Raji notes this is a very important trend. Being addicted to pain medications makes it hard to manage your daily work when that addiction is taking hold. Opioid use is not opioid addiction. Opioid utilization can lead to opioid addiction.

[11:50 ] There are alternatives to treating pain that have come through with the greater awareness of opioid addiction.

[12:04 ] It’s RIMS plug time! Webinars! On August 27th, Riskonnect returns to discuss How To Successfully Deploy AI in Risk Management. On September 5th, Merrill Herzog debuts on RIMS Webinars with the Role of Insurance in Building Resilience Against an Active Assailant Attack.

[12:26 ] On September 12th, HUB International returns to deliver the third part of their Ready for Tomorrow series, Pivot and Swerve: Staying Agile During Shifting Market Dynamics.

[12:41 ] On September 19th, Origami Risk returns to deliver Leveraging Integrated Risk Management For Strategic Advantage. More RIMS Webinars will be announced soon and added to RIMS.org/Webinars. Register there. Registration is always complimentary for RIMS members.

[13:00 ] The RIMS ERM Conference 2024 will be held November 18th and 19th in Boston, Massachusetts. The agenda is live.

[13:12 ] The submission process is open for the RIMS ERM Global Award of Distinction. A link to the application is in this episode’s show notes. The d