Today's Top Workers' Comp Tech Trends: Improving Efficiency, Communication and Return to Work

Technology has helped many industries survive the COVID-19 pandemic, and workers’ compensation is no exception. From spikes in telemedicine use to transitioning to virtual work environments, the industry was forced to digitize quicker than ever before.

As the COVID-19 situation continues to change and the world figures out what life looks like two years since the pandemic began, we wanted to know, what is next for technology in workers’ compensation? Enlyte surveyed 115 industry professionals to find out, and we’ve shared the results below.

COVID-19 Challenges Are Still Driving Technology Adoption

Though we appear to be emerging from the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic, challenges related to the fallout of the virus are still the top driver of technology in workers’ compensation. Respondents to Enlyte’s survey, which was conducted in January 2022, ranked COVID-19 claims challenges as the top reason their companies added new technologies last year.

Additionally, technologies that facilitate remote communication and aid in health care delivery were the most popular last year. Telemedicine topped the list of 2021 technology investments, followed closely behind by electronic payments and billing, which made a huge jump from fourth to second place compared to a similar survey Enlyte conducted last year. This new focus on electronic payments indicates a growing trend toward digitizing the process to improve efficiencies and reduce operational costs.

Improving Communication and Return to Work is the Next Focus Area

As we look ahead to the next five to 10 years, the industry will increase its use of technology to create better experiences for injured employees, including improving both communication and the return-to-work process. About 28% of Enlyte’s survey respondents said communicating with injured employees is the step in the claim lifecycle that could benefit most from technology, while 22% of respondents said mobile apps and other technologies that help communicate with injured employees are expected to have the biggest effect on the industry in the next five to 10 years.

Now as the industry begins looking to innovate in this area, it is crucial that payers and other stakeholders in the claims process focus on building and implementing technologies that injured employees are willing to adopt and use regularly. While mobile applications may be convenient, it can be a big ask for someone to download them for a once-in-a-lifetime situation. It will be crucial for the industry to look towards texting, email and other communication methods that most people use on a daily basis.  

The Industry is Still Ripe for Automation

Looking ahead, automation is another key opportunity area for the workers’ compensation industry. While most workers’ compensation claims are too complex to be fully automated, the industry still has a big opportunity to improve claims efficiency by automating pieces of the process. For example, increasing bill review automation is a simple, yet effective way to make significant efficiency improvements. While a sophisticated medical bill review engine can automate up to 90% of medical bills, only about 21% of survey respondents said they are automating even close to that many bills (more than 50%). By increasing straight-through processing, payers can not only improve claims processing efficiency, but can also free up time for overworked adjusters to focus on claims that matter most. 

The Future of Technology in Workers’ Compensation

Workers’ compensation professionals, in the near-term, will continue focusing on technology that creates more efficient claims process, manages issues like the Great Resignation and improves remote capabilities. Looking further ahead, the industry will turn its focus to improving the experience for injured employees, looking to technology, aligned with the human health care delivery component, to help them return to work in a timely fashion. As the industry continues to make these changes and adopt more technology, we’ll continue to see improvements for all involved in the workers’ compensation claims process.

About the Survey

In early 2022, Enlyte surveyed 115 workers’ compensation professionals from across the industry, mostly working at the manager-level or higher at an insurance carrier, third party administrator or employer. Of this group, 40% have more than 15 years of industry experience, and about half have worked for a company with 1,000 employees or less.

About the Author

Shahin Hatamian is senior vice president of product management for Mitchell International, an Enlyte company. He is responsible for product direction and strategic product initiatives for Mitchell’s auto casualty and workers’ compensation software and service solutions. With 25 years of high-tech industry experience, Shahin has an extensive and proven knowledge of product development, marketing, organizational leadership, business strategy, partnerships and global business. Shahin holds a BSEE, an MSEE and an MBA.

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