FedDoctor.com

On May 1, 2009, the Department of Labor’s Office of Workers Compensation Programs adopted the newest version of the American Medical Association’s Guidelines to Rating a Permanent Impairment, 6th Edition. Wow, what a mouth-full!

The AMA Guides, 6th Ed., as they are commonly called, changed how the OWCP adjuticated claims for schedule awards. A schedule award is a payment of compensation to a claimant for the permanent loss of use to a part of their body. The major difference as the OWCP moved from the 5th to the 6th edition has to do with how the specific impairment is calculated.

5th edition ratings where mainly considered as a range of motion based impairment. An examining physician could measure the losses in motion to a limb and use the tables in the old version to calculate impairment. Of course the actual methods are much more complex, but this seemed to be a reasonable method of measuring permanent damage.

The newer version, the 6th edition, uses a diagnosis based impairment. Therefore, if you have a particular diagnosis, you get a particular percentage of loss awarded with some small modifiers to mildly change the ratings. This method makes the actual calculation much more difficult for the physician, and often times, for the patient as well.

Many of the physicians here at FedDoctor.com have extensive experience with the 6th edition ratings. Because of the amount of time that is required to properly calculate impairment under the 6th edition, some of those doctors may charge an out of pocket fee if you are not regularly treating with them. In some cases, you may be able to have some, if not all, of your out of pocket charges reimbursed by the OWCP.

Remember, schedule awards are not given if the impairment rating report is not done correctly, and an incorrect amount can be given if your doctor does not comply with OWCP’s specific requirements. These special requirements are almost always different from state law workers comp regulations.

FedDoctor.com is here to help you find a great new doctor to help you with treatment and evaluations. Visit toady and get started on moving your federal workers compensation claim forward.

Whenever you are applying for a new OWCP work injury claim, it is very important that your doctor provides you with sound medical rationale to support your claim.

Medical rationale can vary greatly depending on the type of injury you have sustained. There are 4 major types of cause recognized by OWCP: Direct Cause, Aggravation, Acceleration, and Precipitation.

Your doctor’s ability to relate your symptoms through one of those types of cause is extremely important. Just because you suffer from a condition does not mean that OWCP will accept your claim. That is why seeing a federal doctor who understands how to establish your cause of injury is so important.

Your doctor can tell if your injury is work related, but they may not know how to portray that to the OWCP. FedDoctor.com helps to connect you with talented medical providers that can help you with both.

FedDoctor.com is a new service. This is the first website of its kind and the only website devoted entirley to helping federal employees all over the nation find great medical care for their OWCP claims.

Unfortunately, work accidents and injuries happen every day. Now, federal employees finally have a reliable database that helps them find local physicians to treat their job related conditions and help them get the right documentation to satisfy the OWCP. This can be the difference in an accepted or denied claim.

You can help federal employees nationwide find doctors by Liking our Facebook page or Following us on Twitter. Subscribe to our blog and tell your union officials that we are here to help federal employees nationwide.

If youvisit one of our doctors, tell others about the positive experience that you have to let them know that help is right around the corner. Help us spread the word!

The term “Federal Doctors” is simply used to describe a physician who has expressed an interest in federal workers compensation treatment. Much like a “Federal Attorney”, there is no specific designation as to what type of workers compensation they practice. They have simply elected to devote a portion of their practice to the treatment of federal employees who suffer work place injuries.

Finding a federal doctor can be extremely difficult. Federal employees are outnumbered 50:1 to the non-federal workforce. Most doctors do not see the point in learning a completely different system for 2% of there potential clientele. It is up to us(including you!) to help educate them on the need that exists for federal employees.

We are constantly chasing down leads on physicians that might understand and be willing to help more federal employees nationwide. Unfortunately, many times we find out that once we speak with that particular doctor, they have decided that they do not want to deal with the OWCP anymore.

That is why they are not on the website. Only doctors who are actively pursuing the federal workers compensation claimants are even considered to be members of FedDoctor.com. We want only the very best of treating and examining physician to represent out website. Their understanding and knowledge of both OWCP and the 6th Edition of the AMA Guides is crucial, not to mention the many forms that are often required.

Our members want to help you navigate the OWCP processes and provide you with the evidence that you need to help make you claim run like it should. Read more of our blog posts and like us on Facebook and Twitter to let everyone know that they can finally find a doctor who can help them.

In many cases, a claimants accepted OWCP claim does not include all the diagnosis the claimant is suffering from.

Sound confusing? Many doctors think so, too. That is why a federal doctor is so important. A doctor who has experience with the federal workers compensation programs knows that supplying the OWCP with conclusive medical evidence can be the difference in you getting you the treatment and benefits that you are entitled to.

If your injury is is accepted for a minor condition initially, but a new diagnosis becomes available after further tests, the claim needs to be upgraded to reflect the more serious condition. This can make the difference in how the OWCP processes requests for treatment now and later on in your life. This process is something most doctors are not exposed to in their normal, non-federal practices.

Most insurance providers do not care about cause of injury. They are in place to pay for care regardless of how the injury occurred. However, OWCP cares almost entirely about the causation of the conditions and requires as much objective testing and detailed narratives as you could imagine.

Federal doctors (ones who simply understand the federal system), know how to work with the OWCP to get your conditions accepted and move your treatment and benefits forward. These are the type of doctors you can find here on FedDoctor.com.

They can help you get treatment, establish a claim, and even help you get an impairment rating to help if you need to file for a schedule award or disability claim.

Search your zip code to find your new federal doctor today, and tell your friends!

Depending on what type of injury or illness you have, there are a variety of different specialists that can treat your conditions. FedDoctor.com cannot provide every type of specialist in every region in the country, but we are trying to fill our network with as many as we can find.

Remember that a federal doctor is simply a doctor who understands the federal workers compensation system and how to work with OWCP to get your claim heading in the right direction and get you on the road to recovery. If you have a federal workers compensation attorney working on your file, the right doctor can provide the medical evidence that they will need to help you win your claim.

General practitioners, orthopedics, neurologists, pain management, and psychiatrists are the most commonly used physicians in the federal realm and that is what we focus on in our network. However, they might be able to help you find other specialists if you need one. Seeing a doctor regularly can build your case and help you in the future with your OWCP benefits.