Article ID: 71a1745990a05dcbea465fced188697b61daef661f9259da67e71009927b4589
Source ID: secondary:businessinsurance.com
Published At: -
Extraction Method: bs4_heuristic
Body Text
California comp medical access stable despite provider declines: Report - Business Insurance Skip to content Register for free Search Search Log In Risk Management Cyber Risks Pricing Trends Mergers & Acquisitions Technology Sponsored Content WSIA RISKWORLD Workers Comp & Safety Workers Comp Cost Control Pain Management Workplace Safety International EMEA Asia-Pacific Latin America People Events BI Intelligence Top 100 Agents & Brokers Best Places to Work 2026 Lists Directories Insurance Pricing BI Stock Index Magazine Current Issue Past Issues Subscribe Women to Watch ALL INsurance Resources Risk Perspectives Sponsored Content Webinars White Papers Risk Management Cyber Risks Pricing Trends Mergers & Acquisitions Technology Sponsored Content WSIA RISKWORLD Workers Comp & Safety Workers Comp Cost Control Pain Management Workplace Safety International EMEA Asia-Pacific Latin America People Events BI Intelligence Top 100 Agents & Brokers Best Places to Work 2026 Lists Directories Insurance Pricing BI Stock Index Magazine Current Issue Past Issues Subscribe Women to Watch ALL INsurance Resources Risk Perspectives Sponsored Content Webinars White Papers Risk Management Cyber Risks Pricing Trends Mergers & Acquisitions Technology Sponsored Content WSIA RISKWORLD Workers Comp & Safety Workers Comp Cost Control Pain Management Workplace Safety International EMEA Asia-Pacific Latin America People Events BI Intelligence Top 100 Agents & Brokers Best Places to Work 2026 Lists Directories Insurance Pricing BI Stock Index Magazine Current Issue Past Issues Subscribe Women to Watch ALL INsurance Resources Risk Perspectives Sponsored Content Webinars White Papers Risk Management Cyber Risks Pricing Trends Mergers & Acquisitions Technology Sponsored Content WSIA RISKWORLD Workers Comp & Safety Workers Comp Cost Control Pain Management Workplace Safety International EMEA Asia-Pacific Latin America People Events BI Intelligence Top 100 Agents & Brokers Best Places to Work 2026 Lists Directories Insurance Pricing BI Stock Index Magazine Current Issue Past Issues Subscribe Women to Watch ALL INsurance Resources Risk Perspectives Sponsored Content Webinars White Papers California comp medical access stable despite provider declines: Report by Louise Esola Workers Comp , Workers Comp Cost Control Aug 31, 2026 California injured workers generally continue to receive timely medical care even as participation by physicians and other providers declines, according to a Rand report, creating what researchers called a “puzzle” for the state’s workers compensation system. The August report, the first of four annual studies required under state law and prepared for the California Department of Industrial Relations, found that patient-level measures of access remained largely stable from 2017 through 2024, despite declines in physicians, chiropractors and psychologists. Statewide, the median time from an injury report to a worker’s first evaluation and management visit has remained at one day since 2019. The median wait for a first physical medicine visit fell to 16 days in 2024, down from 17 days in 2022 and 2023. However, researchers found signs of potential access problems outside urban areas. Travel distances for evaluation and management and for physical medicine visits have increased since 2022 for suburban and rural workers, and rural workers have also experienced longer travel distances for behavioral health care. The Central Valley and Central Coast also recorded substantially longer waits for physical medicine care in 2024, with median waits of 26 and 31 days, respectively, compared with a statewide median of 16 days. Rand said the findings suggest that access remains stable for the typical injured worker but may be becoming more difficult for a minority of workers, particularly those in suburban and rural areas. Meanwhile, the number of providers treating workers compensation patients remained essentially flat, falling 0.3% to 74,599 in 2024 compared with the 2022-2023 average. That stability masked significant changes in the provider mix. Physician participation fell 1.5%, chiropractor participation dropped 2.1%, physical therapists declined 1% and psychologists fell 4.6%. Participation increased 11.2% among nurse practitioners, 4.5% among physician assistants and 9.2% among acupuncturists. Among physicians, participation declines included primary care, orthopedic surgery, other surgery, anesthesiology, physical medicine and rehabilitation, and neurology. Rand said increased use of nurse practitioners and physician assistants may be helping preserve access as physician participation declines, although those providers cannot substitute for physicians and therapists for all services, including surgery and physical therapy. Provider availability also varied sharply geographically. Among larger regions, the Bay Area had 907 providers per 10,000 workers compensation patients in 2024, compared with 507 in the Inland Empire and 526 in the Central Valley. Rand said policymakers should continue monitoring whether declining provider participation eventually translates into broader access problems, particularly given regional disparities, longer travel distances and a growing concentration of care among fewer providers. Related News AI-driven cyber risk is top concern for global financial stability: FSB August 31, 2026 Sony, Warner Music sue Anthropic over songs used in AI training August 31, 2026 Michelin-starred restaurant gets a taste of wage-and-hour litigation August 31, 2026 Marsh replaces marine leader August 31, 2026 Ohio approves $1 billion comp dividend for employers August 31, 2026 The Hartford names CUO for global specialty August 31, 2026 Aon sees USI deal fueling wholesale, middle-market growth August 31, 2026 Nepal floods threaten billions in insured losses August 31, 2026 Europe storms to cost insurers hundreds of millions: Aon August 31, 2026 Facebook-f X-twitter Linkedin-in Business Insurance is a singular, authoritative news and information source for executives focused upon risk management, risk transfer and risk financing. Never miss important news: Become a Business Insurance Online subscriber today Subscribe Now Information About Us Contact Advertise Privacy Policy Terms & Conditions Copyright 2026. BUSINESS INSURANCE HOLDINGS Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
Metadata (JSON)
{
"score": 15.066666666666666
}