Quarterly Newsletter: 2nd Quarter (April 1 - June 30, 2025)

A sample of where our research was used and shared over the past three months.

Research Briefings & Disseminations

Each quarter, we share our research at a variety of events nationwide. This spring, WCRI CEO Ramona Tanabe participated in a panel on workplace mental health at the Forces at Work Symposium, hosted by the Travelers Institute at the New York Stock Exchange (April 7, 2025). She joined former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams and Travelers SVP Richard C. Ives and discussed WCRI’s research on comorbidities and their impact on recovery and return-to-work outcomes. The event attracted more than 6,000 livestream viewers. Watch now.

Studies Published

Research In Action

National: Scott D. Szymendera of the Congressional Research Service cited WCRI’s Workers’ Compensation Laws as of January 1, 2025, in written testimony to the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce during a hearing on FECA reform and taxpayer protections.
Louisiana: WCRI’s CompScope™ Benchmarks reports for Louisiana were referenced during hearings in both the Louisiana House of Representatives and State Senate on House Bill 117, which proposed creating a new medical fee schedule. WCRI was also asked to provide relevant studies to individuals preparing testimony, including Designing Workers’ Compensation Medical Fee Schedules, 2022, WCRI Medical Price Index for Workers’ Compensation, 17th Edition, and other CompScope™ Benchmarks reports.
Colorado: WCRI studies, including The Impact of Provider Choice on Workers’ Compensation Costs and Outcomes and Designing Workers’ Compensation Medical Fee Schedules, 2022, were cited in written testimony by groups both supporting and opposing Colorado’s HB25-1300. This legislation, signed into law in June 2025 and effective January 1, 2028, gives injured workers the right to select their own primary treating physician.

Webinars

This quarter, we hosted three well-attended webinars focused on recent WCRI research and explored timely issues in workers' compensation:

Heat-Related Illnesses in the Workplace: As climate conditions intensify, this webinar discussed WCRI's recent research on the connection between high temperatures and heat-related illnesses (HRIs) in the workplace.
Highlights of the Delaware Workers’ Compensation System: Featuring findings from our CompScope™ Benchmarks study, this webinar gave stakeholders a detailed look at key performance metrics and how Delaware compares with other states.
Workers’ Comp Claims Composition & Trends Around the Pandemic: This webinar discussed WCRI's study evaluating shifts in claim characteristics from 2017 to 2022—a period marked by significant economic and workforce disruptions in the United States.

Member Spotlight

Nancy Kelly of Averitt Express—a transportation and logistics company with 140 service centers and over 8,000 employees across more than 21 states—shares how WCRI membership supports her work. With 15 years of experience as a risk and nurse case manager, she highlights her favorite research and explains how she puts it into action. Watch now.

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