Cost, Severity and Prevalence of Agricultural-Related Injury Workers’ Compensation Claims in Farming Operations from 14 U.S. States

Navneet Kaur Baidwan, Marizen R. Ramirez, Fred Gerr, Daniel Boonstra, Joseph E. Cavanaugh and Carri Casteel
Additional contact information
Navneet Kaur Baidwan: UAB/Lakeshore Collaborative, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
Marizen R. Ramirez: Division of Environmental Health Sciences, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
Fred Gerr: Occupational and Environmental Health, College of Public Health, University of Iowa, Iowa, IA 52246, USA
Daniel Boonstra: Biostatistics, College of Public Health, University of Iowa, Iowa, IA 52242, USA
Joseph E. Cavanaugh: Biostatistics, College of Public Health, University of Iowa, Iowa, IA 52242, USA
Carri Casteel: Occupational and Environmental Health, College of Public Health, University of Iowa, Iowa, IA 52246, USA

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 8, 1-12

Abstract: (1) Background: There is no national surveillance of agricultural injuries, despite agricultural occupations being among the most hazardous in the U.S. This effort uses workers’ compensation (WC) data to estimate the burden of agricultural injuries and the likelihood of experiencing an injury by body part involved, cause, and nature in farming operations. (2) Methods: WC data from 2010 to 2016 provided by a large insurance company covering small to medium-sized farm operations from 14 U.S. states was used. We investigated the associations between injury characteristics and WC costs and the risk of having a more severe versus a less severe claim. The proportion of costs attributable to specific claim types was calculated. (3) Results: Of a total 1000 claims, 67% were medical only. The total cost incurred by WC payable claims (n = 866) was USD 21.5 million. Of this, 96% was attributable to more severe claims resulting in disabilities or death. The most common body part injured was the distal upper extremity. Falling or flying objects and collisions were the most expensive and common causes of injury. (4) Conclusions: Characterizing the cost and severity of agricultural injury by key injury characteristics may be useful when prioritizing prevention efforts in partnership with insurance companies and agricultural operations.

Keywords: agriculture; injuries; workers’ compensation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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