PRESS RELEASE: Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Benefits Remain Steady

For Immediate Release | August 16, 2011

Contact:

Jill Braunstein at (202) 452-8097

WASHINGTON, DC— Worker’s compensation benefits for workers injured on the job in Pennsylvania remained unchanged at $2.9 billion in 2009, according to a study released today by the National Academy of Social Insurance (NASI). The number of covered workers in Pennsylvania fell to 5.3 million in 2009 (the most recent year with complete data), a 3.5 percent drop from the previous year, due in large part to the economic downturn.

Workers’ compensation benefits for medical care in the state decreased by 1.1 percent to $1.3 billion and cash benefits increased by 0.9 percent to $1.6 billion in 2009. Medical benefits accounted for less than half of total benefits.

Workers’ Compensation Benefits and Coverage, 2009
PENNSYLVANIA
Aggregate Amounts	2009	Change in Percent
Covered workers (in millions)	5.3	-3.5
Covered wages (in billions)	$237	-2.6
Workers' compensation benefits paid (in billions)	$2.9	0.0
Medical benefits	1.3	-1.1
Cash benefits	1.6	0.9
Medical benefits share	46%	–
UNITED STATES
Covered workers (in millions)	124.9	-4.4
Covered wages (in billions)	$5,675	-4.7
Workers' compensation benefits paid (in billions)	$58.3	0.4
Medical benefits	28.9	-1.1
Cash benefits	29.4	1.9
Employer costs	$73.9	-7.6
Source: National Academy of Social Insurance, 2011.

Nationally, workers’ compensation benefits increased 0.4 percent to $58.3 billion. This change included both a 1.1 percent decrease in medical benefits and 1.9 percent increase in cash benefits. Employment of covered workers fell by 4.4 percent, while employer costs declined by 7.6 percent; both numbers represent the biggest percentage declines in over 20 years.

The new report, Workers’ Compensation: Benefits, Coverage and Costs, 2009, is the fourteenth in the series which provides the only comprehensive data on workers’ compensation benefits for the nation, the states, the District of Columbia, and federal programs.

NOTE TO REPORTERS AND EDITORS: For a copy of the printed report, media can contact Jill Braunstein at (202) 452-8097 or by e-mail at jillbraun@nasi.org. All others should contact Ishita Sengupta at isengupta@nasi.org.

EXPERTS TO CONTACT:

Ishita Sengupta
National Academy of Social Insurance
(202) 452-8097
isengupta@nasi.org

John F. Burton, Jr.
Rutgers University and Cornell University
(732) 274-0600
jfburtonjr@aol.com

The National Academy of Social Insurance is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization made up of the nation’s leading experts on social insurance. Its mission is to promote understanding of how social insurance contributes to economic security and a vibrant economy.

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