Workers' Compensation Claims By Industry Sector and Causation — Ohio, 2003–2010

BACKGROUND:  Statewide workers’ compensation (WC) claims data are available for each state in varied forms and can be used for public health purposes. This project demonstrates how WC claims data in Ohio are being used for surveillance of occupational injuries and illnesses by industry and causation. The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (OHBWC) insures about two-thirds of Ohio workers. To assess trends and identify higher risk industry sectors, OHBWC and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) analyzed eight years of OHBWC claims data by three mutually exclusive causation categories: ergonomic–related (ERGO) musculoskeletal disorders, slips/trips/falls (STF), or other event/exposure (OTH).

METHODS:  OHBWC used Employer Identification Numbers to link OHBWC-insured, single-location, privately owned employer policy data with unemployment insurance data containing denominator (number of employees) and industry (North American Industry Classification System, or NAICS) for each employer. NIOSH used national information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics on work hours per employee by industry to estimate the number of full-time equivalent employees (FTE). Coded injury/illness diagnosis data and narrative text on causation were used to auto-code claims as ERGO, STF, or OTH. In each causation category, industry sectors were ranked twice, once by claim frequency and once by claim rate per 100 FTE. The two ranks were then averaged to calculate a Prevention Index value that can be used to identify high priority industry sectors. Trends in rates were estimated using Poisson regression analysis.

RESULTS:  From 2003–2010, there were 679,635 allowed WC claims (lost-time claims=127,904) associated with OHBWC-insured, single-location, private employers. Claims frequency was highest in the Manufacturing sector (NAICS 31/32/33), which had 29% of all claims (26% of lost time claims), exceeding its share of the workforce (16%). Based on preliminary results, the distribution of lost-time claims categorized by causation was: ERGO=32%, STF=32%, and OTH=36%. Statistically significant downward trends (3–11% per year) were observed for all causes in almost all industries. The ERGO claims rate for Public Safety (Ambulance Services) was always 3–13 times higher than other industry sectors. Based on the Prevention Index values by causation, the highest risk industry sectors were Manufacturing (ERGOs and OTHs), Construction (ERGOs, STFs, and OTHs) and  Transportation/Warehousing/Utilities (STFs).

CONCLUSIONS:   Risk varies by industry and causation. A more detailed analysis of Ambulance Service industry claims is underway. Surveillance using state WC data can be a useful way to identify high risk sectors and prioritize prevention efforts.