What is an IME?
An independent medical examination (IME) occurs when a doctor/physical therapist/chiropractor who has not previously been involved in a person’s care examines an individual. There is not doctor/therapist-patient relationship.
An injured worker has THE RIGHT to request a second opinion during his/her course of medical treatment . However, the IME will be at your own expense. If you feel strongly that you need a second opinion, you may consider requesting an IME through the Worker’s Compensation Board of Indiana.
This option is available to you once you are released from the worker’s compensation doctor to return to work.
If the Worker’s Compensation Board of Indiana agrees to schedule an injured worker for an independent medical examination, they will ask the employer’s insurance carrier to pay you, the injured worker, two (2) weeks of TTD benefits in advance of the appointment. If the doctor for the independent medical examination (IME) suggests that the worker needs to be off work for two (2) or more weeks, then the lost wages paid to him or her in advance will be applied to the disability pay he or she should receive for this period of time off work.
But, if the independent doctor determines that the injured worker does not need to be off work, then he or she will have to repay the insurance carrier this money.
So, whether or not you cash the check is up to you. Don’t feel like a fish out of water. Call the law office Klezmer Maudlin, PC to assist you with staying afloat in the world of worker’s compensation law.
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