Profits and BY NINA M. FRENCH, CURRENT CONSULTING GROUP
hundreds of TPAs and employers, I remain fascinated by the industry and its constant change. As we begin a new year, 2019 is proving to be perhaps the busiest the industry has yet seen. Prescription drug use continues to plague the U.S. as the opioid epidemic rages on in all 50 states. Marijuana legalization marches forward, with over 30 states having some form of legal use. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found a 78% increase in e-cigarette use by teens in a single year.1
A
fter 26 years in the employee screening industry and having had the privilege of working with
With such change, it is difficult to imagine
that anything will remain the same, but one thing that remains a constant is that drug abuse costs money. Lots of money. Substance-use disorders affect 20.8
million Americans, almost 8% of the adult and adolescent population.2
Add in the
impact to family members, and almost 1/3 of the U.S. population is impacted by addiction. 75% of these people are part of the workforce, costing businesses an estimated $442 billion dollars annually.3 According to the National Safety
Council (NSC), 39% of employers viewed prescription drug use as a threat to safety, yet only 24% listed it as a problem.4
Logic
and statistics seem to be at odds. Te NSC further found that: • 95% of employers are concerned about the costs of benefits;
• 93% are concerned about their ability to hire qualified workers;
• 84% are concerned about the costs of workers’ compensation;
• 67% are concerned about drug misuse; and,
• 61% are concerned about illegal drug sale or use.
Te Surgeon General’s 2016 report,
Facing Addiction in America, notes the U.S. spends about $35 billion a year to treat
This information is provided for educational purposes only. Reader retains full responsibility for the use of the information contained herein. 28 datia focus spring 2019
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