Present law requires an injured employee to accept the medical benefits afforded under the Workers' Compensation Law. Present law also provides that, in any case when the employee has suffered an injury and expressed a need for medical care, the employer must designate a group of three or more independent reputable physicians, surgeons, chiropractors or specialty practice groups if available in the injured employee's community or, if not so available, within a 125 mile radius of the employee's community of residence, from which the injured employee must select one to be the treating physician.
This bill rewrites the provisions above to remove the provisions relative to the employer provided panel of physicians, so that the employee has the right to select one treating physician in any field or specialty. This bill provides, instead, that, after the initial provider is selected, the employee must obtain prior consent from the employer or workers' compensation carrier for a change of treating physician within that same field or specialty. However, the employee is not required to obtain approval to change to a treating physician in another field or specialty.
REFERRALS
Present law requires the treating physician that is selected from the options provided by the employer to, when necessary, make referrals to a specialist physician, surgeon, or chiropractor and immediately notify the employer. Once a referral is made, the employer has three business days to provide the employee with a panel of three or more independent reputable physicians, surgeons, chiropractors or specialty practice groups; or the employer will be deemed to have accepted the referral. If the employer does provide such a panel to the employee, then the employee may only choose from the panel provided by the employer.
This bill rewrites the provisions above, removing the provisions relative to the employer provided panel of physicians, so that, when necessary, the treating physician selected by the employee has the right to accept the services of other specialists to whom the employee is referred by the treating physician to administer medical treatment. However, this bill limits the referrals by the treating physician to one physician within a specialty or subspecialty area.
SECOND OPINION
Present law provides that when the treating physician or chiropractor refers the injured employee, the employee is entitled to have a second opinion on the issue of surgery and diagnosis from a physician or chiropractor from a panel of two physicians practicing in the same specialty as the physician who recommended the surgery. In cases where the employer has provided a panel of specialists, the employee may choose one of the two remaining specialists to provide a second opinion on the issue of surgery and diagnosis. However, present law does not allow the employee's decision to obtain a second opinion to alter the previous selection of the treating physician or chiropractor.
This bill rewrites the provisions above, removing the provisions relative to the employer provided panel of physicians, so that when the treating physician or chiropractor refers the injured employee, the employee is entitled to have a second opinion on the issue of surgery and diagnosis from a physician or chiropractor practicing in the same specialty as the physician who recommended the surgery.
CHANGE OF TREATING PHYSICIAN
Present law provides that in all cases where the treating physician refers the employee to a specialist physician, surgeon, chiropractor or specialty practice group, the specialist physician, surgeon, or chiropractor to which the employee is referred, or selected by the employee from a panel provided by the employer, becomes the treating physician until treatment by the specialist physician, surgeon, or chiropractor concludes and the employee is referred back to the treating physician selected by the employee from the initial panel.
This bill rewrites the provisions above, removing the provisions relative to the employer provided panel of physicians, so that in all cases where the treating physician has referred the employee to a specialist physician, surgeon, chiropractor, or specialty practice group, the specialist physician, surgeon, or chiropractor to which the employee is referred becomes the treating physician until treatment by the specialist physician, surgeon, or chiropractor concludes and the employee is referred back to the treating physician selected by the employee.
REMEDIES
This bill also makes it a criminal offense, punishable as a Class C misdemeanor, for a person to interfere with an injured employee's selection of an authorized physician to treat the employee, or to improperly influence or attempt to influence a medical opinion of a physician who has treated or examined an injured employee.
APPLICABILITY
This bill applies to injuries occurring on or after July 1, 2023.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 50-6-204(a), 50-6-204