Tag: health care

As Congress debates passage of a health care reform bill, the potential cost of meeting new health care requirements is causing some consternation in the business community. Small business owners in particular are concerned that new federal income surtaxes may take too big a chomp out of profitability. Some are even worried that too big a health insurance bite could force them out of business. Among other things, the current plan could cost small businesses 5.4% in new health care taxes and levy payroll taxes of as much as 8% on other businesses. Of course, who knows what the final bill will actually look like, but taking proactive measures would seem to be a wise move.

Implementing an ergonomic plan now and switching to ergonomically designed material handling equipment is a proven way to lower workplace injury rates and significantly decrease the need for medical services. Lower risks mean lower insurance costs. The day is coming when businesses that use ergonomics may enjoy special discounts like homeowners now receive for installing security systems and smoke detectors. It’s something business owners might want to address with their insurers.

Back injuries account for more workers’ compensation claims than any other workplace injury. They are just one of a class of injuries termed musculoskeletal disorders that involve injury to the body’s connective tissues. These injuries to muscles, nerves, tendons, joints, cartilage or spinal discs account for no less than one-third of U.S. workplace injuries, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The cost of a musculoskeletal injury goes beyond immediate medical care. Often extensive — and expensive — physical therapy or other post-injury care is required. On average, workers miss more work days for musculoskeletal injuries than for any other type of workplace injury. Once workers return to the job, the incidence of reinjury is high and many will be unable to fulfill their originally assigned duties. Particularly if reinjury occurs, there is a high risk of permanent disability.

Part 2 on Monday

As we began discussing Friday, pending health care reform could wind up taking a big bite out of businesses’ bottom lines. Businessmen who take proactive measures to bring down medical costs today will realize significant savings going forward. As we noted in our last post, largely preventable musculoskeletal injuries account for 33% of workplace injuries.

In 2007, U.S. workers suffered 335,390 musculoskeletal injuries requiring a median nine days away from work. National Safety Council statistics for 2008 list the following medical costs for common musculoskeletal injuries:

$15,313 – Upper back
$23,820 – Lower back
$12,726 – Hand, finger, wrist
$21,577 – Arms, wrist, shoulder

And that doesn’t include the cost of missed work days, insurance, workers’ compensation, disability, decreased productivity or low morale. Ergonomics can drastically reduce and generally all but eliminate the risk of musculoskeletal injury. Ergonomics is the science of adapting the equipment to fit the worker. Ergonomics recognizes the breadth of human differences and designs equipment that will accommodate those differences while supporting worker performance. The result is decreased injuries, improved productivity and increased worker morale. Costs go down and profits go up.

All this from a simple, well-designed piece of material handling equipment. Except there’s nothing simple about ergonomic design. Hours of careful observation, consultation, statistical analysis and engineering expertise go into the ergonomic design of each of DJ Products’ powered tugs and motorized carts. Every element in our ergonomic material handling equipment is strategically placed for optimal efficiency and ease of operation by the widest possible pool of workers. DJ Products’ ergonomic carts and tugs significantly decrease the risk of worker injury. Many of our customers report recouping their investment well within the first year of operation.

Don’t wait for health care costs to gobble up your profits. To learn how you can proactively reduce workplace injury, talk to one of DJ Products’ ergonomic experts today.