PERMANENT PARTIAL DISABILITY IN WORKERS COMPENSATION - PROBABILITY AND COSTS

Two samples of administrative records from state workers' compensation programs are used to investigate factors explaining the probability o f a permanent partial disability conditional on a compensation claim a nd the size of the award conditional on a permanent partial disability . The probability of a permanent disability is found to be positively related to the level of weekly permanent partial disability benefits a s well as the potential duration of benefits. In addition, the process determining whether compensation claimants receive a permanent partia l award is independent of and different from the process determining t he size of the award.