Located just 16 miles from New York City and home to nearly 300,000
residents, Rockland County is the smallest county in New York State
outside of the City's five boroughs. With a full gamut of local
government services, including police, fire and rescue, library, and
parks and recreation, this small county has most of the features of its
larger neighbors.
As such, the County was looking for big
results from its third-party administrator (TPA) when it began a search
for a new TPA partner in 2005. The County operates a successful
self-insured workers' compensation program and wanted a TPA with the
resources and services that would make a real difference. Rockland
County selected PMA Management Corp. (PMAMC) as its third-party
administrator just in time for its 2006 policy.
Claims Administration
One of the County's top demands when it
signed on with PMAMC was a more assertive approach to claims handling.
During the relationship's first few months, PMAMC transferred the
County's claims - nearly 1,000 files to its system - and reviewed all
open claims for closure opportunities. "The transfer was fast and
efficient because of everyone's open communication from the start,"
explains Mary McCabe, RN, Regional Claims Supervisor, The PMA Insurance
Group. "The County collaborated with us from the start and this had a
tremendous impact on our ability to investigate and close a substantial
number of claims." In fact, within 10 months, PMAMC reduced Rockland
County's open pending claims by more than 60 percent - from more than
600 to just over 200. "We've also recommended settlements for a number
of open claims, which will likely close in the near future," adds
McCabe.
Additionally, the County's new lost-time
claims are trending down 15 to 20 percent compared to 2005's numbers.
"With PMAMC closing many of our existing claims and new ones trending
down," says Karen Cassa, Insurance Coordinator, Rockland County, "we've
also been able to lower our workers' compensation case reserves by $3
million."
Medical Cost Containment
PMAMC is also improving Rockland County's
bottom line with substantial savings on its medical bills. As part of
its Medical Savings Program, PMAMC reviews the County's medical bills
for inaccuracies in coding, service charges and medical documentation,
and makes adjustments where applicable. "So far, PMAMC has saved us 56
percent on our billed charges, which translates into more than $850,000
in direct savings," says Cassa. "For a smaller county like Rockland,
that number has a significant impact on our self-insured program."
Proven Resources
Beyond realizing greater savings in its
workers' compensation program, Rockland County also wanted easier access
to its claims information and additional safety resources. PMA CINCH®,
PMAMC 's online risk management information system, gives the County
24-hour access to its critical claims data. "We can log into the system
and check the status of a claim at any given time," notes Annette Marro,
Workers' Compensation Coordinator, Rockland County. "We can also run
reports to track claims by department or in aggregate for the County to
isolate any high claim areas."
The County also has access to PMAMC's
extensive risk control database, which houses helpful resources such as
safety logs and risk control catalogs and bulletins. "These sorts of
resources are crucial elements to a safety-focused culture," says Chuck
Bolesh, Account Executive, PMAMC. "I've seen Rockland County use the
logs and bulletins to build safety awareness in higher claim departments
with great results."
|