III POSITION ON EMPLOYER CHOICE OF PHYSICIAN

This statutorily recognized right of an employer, and acting in its stead by virtue of the contract of insurance, the insurance company, is supported by the Iowa Insurance Institute, a group of insurers writing workers compensation insurance and domiciled or doing business in Iowa. This is because, by giving the employer or insurer some ultimate choice or power over who is the medical provider of an injured worker, workers compensation and hence insurance costs and premiums paid by small business are kept in line. Higher costs of any sort mean less fringe benefits to workers and higher prices to the consuming public.

Iowa's workers compensation costs have been relatively low because Iowa employers and insurers have the ability to control medical costs. To eliminate that power will contribute to rising workers compensation costs, with resultant negative economic development effects.