California Workers' Compensation Inpatient Hospitalization Trends, 2010-2018 (Research Update, published 09/19)

The Institute’s updated review of inpatient care in California tracks the volume and types of inpatient services and procedures used in California workers’ compensation compared to Medicare, Medi-Cal and private coverage, based on an analysis of OSHPD discharge data from 2010 through 2018.  The report provides a breakdown of workers’ comp stays across the top 5 Major Diagnostic Categories (MDCs) and notes the shifts in the MDC distributions across the 9-year study period; shows the top 5 workers’ comp surgical and top 5 medical inpatient discharges by diagnostic related group (MSDRG); gives a breakdown of the top 10 workers’ comp MSDRGs across payer groups in 2018; measures changes in the volume of implant-eligible spinal surgeries from 2010 through 2018; and lists the top 10 California hospitals based on the share of their inpatient discharges that were covered by workers’ comp. The report also includes a discussion section summarizing the findings of the study.