Will My Doctor Have To Testify For My PA Workmans Comp Case?

Getting your benefits is often an uphill battle when insurance carriers and employers deny your claim and insist that your condition is not work-related or that it is not serious enough to keep you from working.  Often, these cases will go before a judge for a hearing before your Workers’ Compensation claim can be approved, and your doctor could play a part in that hearing.

Sometimes your treating physician will be needed to testify about your medical condition, its seriousness, and its relation to your job tasks.  Often, this is the treating physician that the insurance carrier chose, which might mean that it is beneficial to get outside medical opinions for your case as well.  Typically, the doctor will not testify in person at the hearing but rather in a deposition.

For help with your case, call the Certified Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Lawyers at Cardamone Law today at (267) 651-7945.

Will My Doctor Support My Workers’ Compensation Case?

When you face a work injury, your doctor plays an important role.  Not only is your doctor the one treating you and helping you get better, but they are also the one most closely examining your injury and the person who knows the most about it.  This puts them in a pivotal role in supporting your claim for benefits, but the doctor might not always be on your side.

When you get medical treatment for an injury at work, the first 90 days of treatment need to be provided by a doctor who is on a list of care providers that your employer or their insurance carrier chose.  This essentially stacks the deck against you to begin with, as those doctors might not be compassionate toward your position and might focus on getting you patched up and back to work, even if you are not ready to return to work at that time.

As such, when your doctor treats you and examines your condition, they might not agree that you need ongoing treatment, let alone that your injury keeps you from working.  If your doctor does not support your injury claim in the first place, then they will likely not be a good ally in presenting your case to a Workers’ Compensation judge.  Ultimately, your doctor is not under any obligation to agree with your claim, and some doctors should not be trusted to have your best interests in mind.

Instead, our Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation attorneys might be able to get outside opinions and medical reports from other doctors who do see that your condition is serious enough and related to your work, and it will be up to the judge to take these various opinions and make a decision.

Can My Doctor Testify on My Behalf in My Workers’ Comp Hearing

Doctors can be called to testify in a hearing, but it is quite unusual.  Instead, the doctor will usually be called to a deposition performed by either side, depending on the case status and expected length of disability.

If you are the one filing the petition to get your benefits initially, and your doctor supports that claim and agrees that your injury is disabling, then we will usually be the ones to call your doctor to a deposition.  In this deposition, we will ask questions about your condition and your doctor’s professional assessment of it so that we can get their medical opinion on record.

If the employer/insurance carrier is filing a petition to terminate your benefits, then they will be the ones responsible for calling in your doctor to a deposition.  In this, they will want as much evidence as they can from the doctor so that they can get a separate evaluation and know what points in your doctor’s supportive position they need to contest.

In cases with 52 weeks or less of disability, reports are often used instead of testimony.  However, with disabilities lasting longer than 52 weeks, the other side can object to these reports, meaning a deposition will likely be needed instead.  Whether there is a report or testimony, medical records and test results, imaging, etc., usually need to be turned over as well.

What If My Doctor Thinks I’m Faking It or that My Condition isn’t Work Related?

One of the worst positions to be in is getting medical care from a doctor who thinks you are faking your condition or that it doesn’t qualify for Workers’ Comp.  Especially given the fact that doctors are often paid by your employer or their insurance carrier, your doctor might be quite biased against you.  This could lead them to downplay the seriousness of your injuries or even deny that your injury was work-related in the first place.  In any case, they have to treat you and provide reasonable medical care, but they do not have to agree with your Workers’ Comp claim from a professional medical point of view.

This can create problems for your case.  First, you will be left without the support you need when it comes to actually treating your condition and making sure you get better.  Second, we will not be able to use your doctor’s testimony to support your case even though they might be the most knowledgeable about your condition.  In fact, the other side might capitalize on the doctor’s views and fight to use their records and testimony against you.

However, we have a few ways of fighting this.  First, we can use outside doctors to examine you and prove their opinion, though that might require us to pay for them initially and seek those unreimbursed medical costs later as part of your claim.  Second, if you need a specialist who is not on your employer’s list of approved doctors, you can choose the doctor you go to and have your employer pay for it, potentially allowing you to choose a specialist who will support your case.  Third, you may be able to switch to a different doctor on your employer’s list or, after the first 90 days, switch to a doctor of your choice to treat your condition and provide their testimony if the timing works out.

Call Our Workers’ Compensation Lawyers in Pennsylvania Today

For a free case review, call (267) 651-7945 to speak with the Bucks County Workers’ Compensation lawyers at Cardamone Law today.