August 17
The Florida Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) published their August 2020 COVID-19 Report, which utilizes claim data up through July 31, 2020. The data in this report is organized by Claim Frequency, Claim Costs & Characteristics, Coverage Information, and Telemedicine.
According to the report, by the end of July, 11,872 COVID-19 claims were filed, and of those claims 5,144 were denied. COVID-19 claims accounted for 26.2% of all indemnity claims in the Florida workers’ comp system. A total of $13,120,059 was paid to COVID-19 claims, making up 5.3% of total paid benefits.
The report breaks down claim frequency and benefits paid across all 67 Florida counties, as well as by industry, gender, and age. Of note:
- Dade County had the most claims and benefits paid, with 4,092 claims, paying $4.96 million in benefits
- Protective services workers (including first responders) made up 36.6% of COVID-19 claims, totaling 4,345 claims, which accounted for 40.5% of COVID-19 benefits paid, for a total of $5.3 million
- Healthcare workers made up 28.9% of COVID-19 claims, totaling 3,432 claims, which accounted for 34.8% of COVID-19 benefits paid out, for a total of $4.56 million
- Service workers made up 24.4% of COVID-19 claims, totaling 2,897 claims, which accounted for 8.8% of COVID-19 benefits paid, for a total of $1.15 million
- More COVID-19 claims were filed for women than men
In regard to telemedicine, 27,867 telemedicine bills have been submitted since the beginning of the year, dwarfing the total 1,672 bills submitted for the entirety of 2019. Of note:
- Only 336 telemedicine bills were submitted in February, but a height of 10,968 were submitted in April, steadily reducing in the following months
- 13,346 telemedicine bills, or 48% of them, were submitted by medical doctors, with $1.4 million paid
- 7,170 telemedicine bills, or 26% of them, were submitted by physical therapists, with $838,000 paid
July 31st
The Florida Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) published a 2020 COVID-19 report, detailing the impacts the virus has made on workers’ comp, utilizing COVID-19 data as of May 31, 2020.
According to the report, 3,807 COVID-19 claims were filed, making up 15% of workers’ comp claims in Florida. A total of 1,718 claims were denied, and of the accepted claims a total of $3.4 million in paid benefits was dispensed, equaling 2.9% of total paid benefits in Florida workers’ comp.
Approximately 1,567 of these COVID-19 claims were handled by self-insurer government entities, making up 41% of accepted COVID-19 claims, while 822 were self-insured private claims, totaling 22% of accepted COVID-19 claims. All remaining claims were filed by private insurers. Claim count and costs are listed by county.
When looking at the claims across occupations, the report found:
- Healthcare workers made up 1,200 or 57% of compensable COVID-19 claims, equaling $1.3 million or 40% of total COVID-19 benefits paid
- Protective services, which include first responders, made up 650 or 31% of compensable COVID-19 claims, equaling $1.3 million or 40% of total COVID-19 benefits paid
- Office workers made up 128 or 6% of compensable COVID-19 claims, equaling $494,964 or 15% of total benefits paid
- Service industry workers made up 89 or 4% of compensable COVID-19 claims, equaling $127,360 or 4% of total benefits paid
The claims are also broken up by age range and gender, with information on coverage information and associated telemedicine bills.
