The Challenge
A 200-day process, rising costs
The median duration to complete an Ability-to-Work Assessment had climbed to over 200 days — nearly 100 days longer than three years prior — adding cost to the system and delaying workers' lives. Under rate pressure, L&I needed to cut delay and waste without cutting service quality.
The Approach
Lean the process, not the service
- ▸Use Lean to identify and understand the root causes of delay
- ▸Develop methods to resolve the barriers holding up assessments
- ▸Create standards and expectations that promote quality and efficiency
- ▸Replace paper-based transactions with technology and hold administrative cost inflation down
The Outcome
Measurable results
- ✔More than $200M kept in the State Fund by reducing delays and administrative waste
- ✔Assessment duration targeted from 200+ days toward 90
- ✔Medical cost inflation held below the national average