Independent Medical Doctor Disagrees

Answer:

This week, I’ve been working on a case in which an employee has filed for Workers’ Compensation and has two doctors providing two different restrictions. One is a restriction from the Workers’ Comp doctor and one is a restriction from his primary doctor. The employer only wants to follow the restrictions of the Workers’ Comp doctor. Under California law, it’s important for you to understand that the employer can’t just follow the direction of one doctor and ignore the advice of the other doctor. Under California law, the employee and the employer must engage in a process to make sure that the employee doesn’t further injure themselves. If you have been injured at work or you have a disability outside of work, and you have a doctor’s note or multiple doctors’ notes that’s causing confusion as to whether or not you can continue working for the employer (or under what circumstances you can continue working for the employer), it’s important for you to understand that you do have rights. If I can answer any of those questions related to either a Workers’ Compensation claim or just questions from your doctor or any other doctor, feel free to give me a call. I’m happy to walk you through that process.