ODG 2003 Rockets Work Comp and Disability Insurance Markets to New Heights

December 1^st, 2002 – Work Loss Data Institute has released the 8^th edition of Official Disability Guidelines (ODG 2003) with groundbreaking new data elements to fortify the unique position of this evidence-based reference for disability duration.   Since recent completion, the new “Summary Guidelines” (Midrange, At-Risk) are quickly becoming the lifeblood of 21^st century claims handling.  Add the new “Activity Restrictions”, “Age Adjustment Factors” and “CM Triage” indicators, and the recipe for ODG 2003 equals confident, effective, defensible claims handling in times of otherwise uncertainty.

Further, the WLDI team has engineered a major redesign in format based on client input to facilitate quicker, easier identification of appropriate information, and to “dial down the intimidation factor” as one editor puts it.  Executive VP at WLDI, Patricia Whelan told reporters, “Rest assured, we have not sacrificed any of the raw disability data elements on which the ODG database is dutifully based.  The format change is simply a reorganization, that when combined with four powerful new features, results in the most practical achievement to date in disability duration claims management.”

As with each annual edition, the ODG Best Practice Guidelines are fully updated and expanded to reflect the moving target in time and technology that is disability medicine, based on the inclusion of over 1.5 million new cases from CDC & OSHA and a comprehensive review process by the world-renown Editorial Advisory Board of occupational health and disability medicine professionals.  More evidence-based features for 2003 provide added capability to users, typically employers, insurers, providers and case managers.  “Summary Guidelines” allow for the upfront forecasting and reserving of claims.  “Activity Modifications” provide condition-specific restrictions for modified duty at each level of job to allow for early return-to-work without re-injury.  “Age Adjustment Factors” calculate expected duration figures within each condition specifically for workers both young and old, where sufficient data exists.  Finally, “CM Triage” indicators are identified for priority allocation of case management efforts, to be used when resources are spread thin by dwindling budgets or the injured masses.

As resolve and hard work bring cautious confidence back to a shaken nation, Official Disability Guidelines 2003 provides the full complement of tools necessary to remedy unwarranted downtime within the workforce and defend health and welfare decisions in this fertile but litigious world, that fosters the American Dream.

Click here for detail on the new 2003 format and features.

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Last modified: October 10, 2011