Earlier this week, reports on two recent studies provided more evidence that workersâ health has a significant effect on employers.
One study tallied the work days lost to chronic conditions; mental disorders accounted for roughly one third (1.3 billion) of the missed days, and back and neck pain for another third (1.2 billion).
The other study found that employees who got aggressive intervention for depression worked about two weeks more during the yearlong study than those who got the standard advice and were more likely to still be employed at the end of the year. Early analysis indicates that investing $100-$400 on intervention for a depressed employee can save $1,800.
In other news:
Associated Press: Wounded veterans â more than 185,000 so far, and perhaps as many as 700,000 eventually â are seeking care from the Veterans Administration. How will the individual veterans and their government manage the financial burden?
Bloomberg: Brazil's ethanol bloom comes at the expense of cane workers' health.
Dallas Morning News: CDC investigations of the biodefense program at Texas A&M found troubling security problems, but missed cases of human illness and exposure to some of the world's most infectious diseases until a persistent activist and the news media brought them to light.
Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy: An Institute of Medicine committee is calling for influenza transmission studies, improved personal protective equipment for healthcare workers, and promotion of proper PPE use.
House Committee on Education and Labor: Family members of mineworkers and rescuers who died at Crandall Canyon testified at a hearing today.