You are entitled to receive all necessary medical care, which is reasonably required to cure or relieve the effects of the accidental injury.

Important First Steps

It is important to record the first place that an injured worker receives medical treatment because the history in those records is crucial in to the claim. The arbitrators or judges that hear your case give great weight to the history that is in the initial treatment records.  Confirm that the first treating doctor you see has an accurate history in his or her notes.  Make sure to tell this doctor, and all of your doctors, that the injury occurred while you are at work.

Before the changes in the act, you could see two doctors of your choice plus their referrals. For example, if your family doctor refers you to an orthopedic surgeon, and then to a neurologist, and then to a neurosurgeon … seeing all of those doctors counts as 1 doctor (because all doctors within the same chain of referrals).

Language has been added within the Act, to create a PPP (preferred provider program). If the employer notifies you that they have a PPP, prior to your injury, by posting signs, then you would have see a doctor within the PPP or opt out of the PPP and have 1 choice of doctor and his or her chain of referrals.

One of the benefits to hiring an attorney is that once a claim is on file at the IWCC and you notify the medical providers of your pending claim, those providers cannot send your bill to collections. Under the Act, they are not allowed to send your bill to collections.  Without an attorney, providers can send your bill unpaid medical bills collections.

One of our skilled lawyers will work to make sure we have the information we need to get your benefits approved.