Choosing a Doctor for Worker’s Comp Claims

Workers’ compensation is designed to cover all reasonable and necessary medical treatment for work-related injuries and/or illnesses, including doctors’ appointments, medications, surgeries, physical therapy, etc. 

Your treating doctor is a key player in your workers’ comp treatment, from your actual treatment to overseeing all of your medical care to giving opinions that will affect what treatments to which you are entitled. Therefore, it’s important to find a treating doctor you can trust. However, that search may be complicated by your particular state’s limits on doctor selection.

If you have been injured on the job in Pennsylvania, let a Lancaster workman’s compensation lawyer help you with this important decision.

Selecting Your Treating Doctor

You should be careful when selecting the best treating doctor for you, even if you’re limited to a network or a list of physicians. To the extent you are allowed to choose your own doctor, consider:

• The doctor’s willingness to work within the workers’ comp medical fee schedule
• The doctor’s knowledge of the workers’ compensation claim process
• The doctor’s willingness to support your workers’ comp claim with detailed reports
• The doctor’s experience and understanding of your particular medical condition
• The doctor’s availability for medical appointments
• How comfortable you are with the doctor

Doctor Selection Rules in Pennsylvania

Typically, in Pennsylvania, you must see an approved doctor for the first 90 days of your treatment. Nonetheless, you are still allowed input on this decision. Employers generally have a panel of doctors posted at your worksite. If the posted panel has six or more doctors listed, you must see a doctor from that list for those initial 90 days after your injury.

The employer doctors must be qualified professionals licensed to practice medicine and provide reasonably competent treatment. If your employer does not have a panel of doctors posted anywhere at your job site, you can choose your own doctor from the beginning.

After the initial 90 days, you can choose your own doctor as long as you provide notice to the workers’ compensation insurer within five days of changing physicians. Keep in mind that there is some value in the continuity of your treatment, so, from a practical standpoint, you should only change doctors if you feel strongly that the change will benefit you.

Contact a Lancaster Workman’s Compensation Lawyer at Vanasse Law LLC for More Information

The workers’ comp process is complex, and selecting your treating doctor is a small but relatively important part of that process. 

A Lancaster workman’s compensation lawyer at Vanasse Law LLC will not only help you select your treating doctor but will also help you understand the current state of Pennsylvania law regarding workers’ comp. We will also help you explore your options, protect your rights and file any necessary claims on your behalf. Additionally, even if your injuries do not qualify for workers’ compensation, you may have other legal options.

If you have suffered a work-related injury or illness, contact us online for a same-day response.