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Study Links Chiropractic Care to Lower Costs, Faster Return to WorkOn May 18, 2022, the publication Claims Journal published an article with the above title. The article was based on a study by the Workers Compensation Research Institute published on May 17, 2022, with the title, "Chiropractic Care for Workers with Low Back Pain."
In this study, researchers reviewed more than 2 million open and closed workers compensation claims from 28 U.S. states, with injuries that occurred between October 1, 2015, through September 30, 2017. The states that were included were Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
The article in Claims Journal starts by addressing the incorrect notions regarding the costs of chiropractic care for workers compensation cases. "Chiropractors are involved in only a small fraction of workers’ compensation claims for low back pain in states where insurers or employers control the choice of medical provider, but a report released Tuesday suggests that skepticism about runaway costs may be unfounded."
The researchers examined the claims from the over 2 million workers compensation claims and compared the patients who received only chiropractic care to those workers who received no chiropractic care at all, and to workers who received services from both chiropractors and other types of providers.
When comparing the costs of care for injured workers who received only chiropractic care, the cost was much less for those who received only chiropractic. The average cost for those patients who only received chiropractic care was $1,366 as compared to $3,522 for treatment of those who did not receive any chiropractic at all. This shows that chiropractic care was 61% less expensive than other forms of care for injured worked with lower back pain.
When chiropractic care was added to other forms of care, the cost savings was less, but still considerable with the average case costing $3001 per case. This showed that when only chiropractic was delivered the biggest cost savings was realized.
The study also noted that the patients who were exclusively cared for by chiropractors had less diagnostic imaging studies and significantly fewer opioid prescriptions. Only 1% of those under only chiropractic care wound up receiving an opioid prescription compared to 10.3% of claimants receiving an opioid prescription who did not get chiropractic care.
Workers Compensation Research Institute President and Chief Executive Officer John Ruser reacted to the study by stating, "This study will be helpful for policymakers and stakeholders who are interested in re-evaluating the role of chiropractors, especially those who have been adopting evidence-based practices and contributing to cost-effective care." |