A recent article in Insurance Business noted that medical costs per workers’ compensation claim in Minnesota held steady in 2025 and that insurance premiums are dropping. On the surface, that suggests a somewhat healthy workers’ compensation system, but who is it really healthy for? Is this good news for the injured worker, or is there more lurking below the surface? We explain what these flat costs may be signaling for the injured worker in today’s blog.
Medical Payments And Your Injury Claim Options
According to the report, medical claim payments held steady in 2025 following two years of increases. This may suggest that fewer workers are getting injured and filing injury claims, but the article cites hospital outpatient fee schedule cuts and steady pricing from medical professionals as key factors, so it’s really not suggesting that we’ve created a safer industry for working professionals. In fact, wage loss severity is actually up 24% over the last five years.
From the workers’ side of things, there isn’t a lot of optimism that steady costs are indicative of major improvements in the workers’ compensation system. There is no data that suggests that claim denials are down or that treatment approvals are getting faster, both of which would be great for injured workers. Instead, this steadiness in cost is likely attributed to some things that employers and insurance companies are doing to make it more challenging for workers to get the full value of their injury claim. Some ways they may be doing this that is reflective of the data include:
More Pressure To Get Injured Workers To Return To Work – Employers may be pressuring employees to return to work before they are fully recovered. The sooner an employee returns to work, the easier it is on an employer and insurance company’s bottom line. Never return before you are physically and mentally able to return to your job, and lean on your doctor’s professional opinion when making this assessment, not advice from your company or pressure from the insurance company.
Light Duty Options – A potential bright spot in the data is that it could suggest that more companies are able to offer light duty work to employees with injury restrictions. Work from home and hybrid work options have become more common following the COVID-19 pandemic, and it’s possible that employers are finding ways to offer gainful employment to injured workers so that they can return to work sooner in a partial capacity. We just caution clients to ensure that their employer is abiding by all the restrictions their doctor has put in place when accepting a light duty role. Turning down gainful employment, even in a partial or light duty capacity, can lead to the termination of your workers’ compensation benefits if the work that is offered falls in line with any medical restrictions, so talk with your doctor and your lawyer to ensure any light duty offerings are within your restrictions before accepting to denying the role so as not to compromise your benefits.
Shorter Claim Durations – Injury payments may be holding steady because insurance companies aren’t approving as much time away from work for an injury. Insurance companies may be paying for shorter treatment windows, again exerting some pressure on employees to return to work when they are “good enough” as opposed to fully healed. This is a delicate tightrope to walk, but again make sure that you only return to work when the offered position fully meets any physical restrictions that are in place.
The steady medical costs in the workers’ compensation industry isn’t cause for celebration for workers on the surface, and many different factors could be contributing to this data. Perhaps it is because of growing flexibility in the ability to offer light duty work to injured workers, allowing them to return to work sooner to help keep costs down, but it could also be the result of growing pressure to get an employee to return to work before they are truly healed. Evaluate your return to work options carefully, consult with your workers’ compensation lawyer and ensure your work restrictions are clearly documented and known to your company if they are trying to get you back to work following an injury.
For more information about navigating the workers’ compensation system following an on-the-job injury, or for help if you feel like you are being unfairly pressured to return to work before you are physically or mentally cleared to do so, reach out to the team at Hey Workers today at (844) 439-9675.
