Six Things to Understand Before Requesting an Appointment
The Ellis Clinic Federal Work Comp checklist emphasizes that OWCP is an administrative system in which the claim type, medical documentation, accepted conditions, treatment authorization, work status, and medical reasoning all matter.
1. Notify & File the Injury
Traumatic injuries generally use CA-1. Occupational disease or cumulative trauma generally uses CA-2. A recurrence may involve CA-2a. The right starting point depends on what happened and when.
2. Claim Number ≠ Acceptance
Receiving an OWCP claim number does not itself mean the claim has been accepted. An acceptance letter should identify the accepted conditions.
3. Select Your Physician
The clinic's handout emphasizes the employee's role in selecting a treating physician and the importance of medical rationale and documentation.
4. Treatment & Authorization
Authorization differs by claim type. For CA-2 and CA-2a claims, the protocol explains that OWCP authorizes treatment.
5. Schedule Awards
Permanent impairment claims require an impairment evaluation using the applicable AMA Guides process and submission of the medical report with the appropriate OWCP paperwork.
6. Denials & Appeals
The checklist identifies reconsideration, oral hearing, and ECAB as paths that may apply after a denial.
Legal Medicine Applied to Federal Workers' Compensation
The supplied Ellis Clinic materials describe services including medical-rationale causation reports and forms, work restrictions and accommodations, temporary total disability documentation, Schedule Award impairment evaluations, oral-hearing testimony, and other Legal Medicine consultation.
Gather and Organize the Records for This Claim
The Appointment Protocol says Ellis Clinic reviews the records and then calls to schedule an appointment. It instructs patients to mail copies only, not originals, and to send only pertinent records.
- Appointment Protocol on top.
- Your or your representative's correspondence to Ellis Clinic.
- OWCP correspondence: decisions, DMA and second-opinion reports, Schedule Awards, etc.
- Employer correspondence: job offers, termination, forms, etc.
- Your correspondence to OWCP and/or your employer.
- Work-status forms and notes from all doctors, chronological with latest on top.
- Operations: operative reports; the protocol says the entire hospital chart is generally not needed.
- Tests: MRI, X-rays, EMG/nerve-conduction studies, and other pertinent testing.
- Physician office records, separated by physician or clinic.
- Relevant non-physician records, such as a functional-capacity evaluation when helpful.
Know What the Current Protocol Says
Accepted & Open OWCP Claim
The current protocol states that the federal workers' compensation appointment is frequently free when the OWCP claim is accepted and open.
Other Claim Status
The protocol lists $500 when a claim is not yet filed, not yet open, closed, needs to be reopened, or similar circumstances.
Payment Information
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