About the report
This report measures the availability and accessibility of care from 2017 to 2022, by the:
- Rate of physician participation in treating work-related injuries.
- Rate of physician retention.
- Timeliness of first non-emergency medical treatment.
Published April 2024 by the Workers' Compensation Research & Evaluation Group.
Summary
One of the primary goals of an effective workers’ compensation system is to ensure that employees with work-related injuries receive timely and appropriate medical treatment. In a healthy workers' compensation system, health care should be easily accessible, prompt, and appropriate. This report measures the availability of care by the rate of physician participation in treating work-related injuries and the rate of physician retention from 2017 to 2022. This report also measures the accessibility of care by the timeliness of first non-emergency medical treatment.
Key findings 
Participation rates of physicians. The total number of physicians actively practicing in Texas increased at an annual rate of 2.6% between 2017 and 2022. The total number of workers’ compensation participating physicians remained relatively stable in 2022 (17,659), resulting in a decreasing participation rate.
Physician retention. Overall, the workers’ compensation physician retention rate was high and relatively stable: 79% in 2017 and 76% in 2022.
Access to medical care by geographical area. In 2022, 79% of active physicians in Texas practiced in the five largest metro areas. Seventy-four percent of workers’ compensation participating physicians were in the largest metro areas.
Timeliness of care. About 82% of claims received initial non-emergency care in seven days or less in injury year 2022, down from 84% in 2017. The share of claims receiving same-day treatment decreased from 44% in injury year 2017 to 41% in 2022, including a slight dip from 45% in 2019 to 41% in 2020 possibly due to COVID-19.