Steering of Injured Workers

[Guest guest]

Hi colleagues,

As you all know employers and some insurers continue to

require injured workers go to the local Occupational Medical Clinic for

treatment of their Workers’ comp injuries in violation of current Oregon law which states

the injured worker gets to choose their provider. Though it is interpreted

as such current law language does not specifically prohibit employers or

insurers from directly or requiring injured workers treat with a particular

provider, provider type, or clinic. Your state association btw your only

state association the Chiropractic Association of Oregon is

continuing to battle this issue for all of

you but we/I as your lobbyist need your continued help. Many of you

doctors have sent me e-mails, letters, and letters from injured workers (the

most powerful weapon) which I was able to use as ammunition during my recent

(Dec. 3) PowerPoint presentation in front of the full Management-Labor Advisory

Committee (MLAC). In addition to these multiple e-mails and letters I

also had a copy of a recent sanction and proposed $2000 fine against a Chevy’s

Restaurant in Hillsboro in the professionally bound document I presented to

each of the 10 members of MLAC…it got there attention. More important

it validated that there indeed is a problem something the employers, business

lobby in general, and the insurance companies denied existed. In

fact as I mentioned prior officials from the Work Comp Division had testified

on more than one occasion that: “We just don’t get complaints from injured

workers that they can’t see a doctor of their choice or a chiropractor of

their choice etc.” My response was always the same

that the reason they receive no complaints is that injured workers don’t

know their rights, don’t know they can treat with the doctor of their

choice, they don’t know who or what the Dept. of Consumer and Business

Services is, what your phone number is and one step further removed from that

is the Investigations and Sanctions Unit…in short they have no clue who

to complain to!

I need more letters especially from injured workers addressed

specifically to the Investigator Leah Bingham (best), also letters from you

doctors addressed to Ms. Bingham, btw it looks I lot more official and less

contrived if your letters are indeed addressed to the investigator instead of

me.

You guys and gals have all been great we are on a roll I

would just like to add more letters to the new bound document that I will

present to the actual Legislative committee during the up coming session

specifically the House Business and Labor

Committee Chaired by Rep. Mike Schaulfer who is very supportive and

actually has made our four work comp bills his committee bills! So please

get me those letters send the original to the investigator and send me a clean

copy of the letter by mail. Send your letters to me at 915 SE 19th Ave, Albany, OR 97322. The letters should be

addressed to the investigator as shown below;

Ms. Leah Bingham

Investigations

and Sanctions Unit

Compliance

Section

Dept.

of Consumer & Business Services

Workers’

Compensation Division

350

Winter Street NE, Rm 27

Salem, Oregon

97309-0405

Questions? Call me at 541-231-4528 Vern Saboe

[Guest guest]

Oops...that should be the OREGON CHIROPRACTIC ASSOCIATION.....sorry!

Vern Saboe

" Steering " of Injured Workers

Hi colleagues,

As you all know employers and some insurers continue to require injured

workers go to the local Occupational Medical Clinic for treatment of

their Workers' comp injuries in violation of current Oregon law which

states the injured worker gets to choose their provider. Though it is

interpreted as such current law language does not specifically prohibit

employers or insurers from directly or requiring injured workers treat

with a particular provider, provider type, or clinic. Your state

association btw your only state association the Chiropractic Association

of Oregon is continuing to battle this issue for all of you but we/I as

your lobbyist need your continued help. Many of you doctors have sent

me e-mails, letters, and letters from injured workers (the most powerful

weapon) which I was able to use as ammunition during my recent (Dec. 3)

PowerPoint presentation in front of the full Management-Labor Advisory

Committee (MLAC). In addition to these multiple e-mails and letters I

also had a copy of a recent sanction and proposed $2000 fine against a

Chevy's Restaurant in Hillsboro in the professionally bound document I

presented to each of the 10 members of MLAC.it got there attention.

More important it validated that there indeed is a problem something the

employers, business lobby in general, and the insurance companies denied

existed. In fact as I mentioned prior officials from the Work Comp

Division had testified on more than one occasion that: " We just don't

get complaints from injured workers that they can't see a doctor of

their choice or a chiropractor of their choice etc. " My response was

always the same that the reason they receive no complaints is that

injured workers don't know their rights, don't know they can treat with

the doctor of their choice, they don't know who or what the Dept. of

Consumer and Business Services is, what your phone number is and one

step further removed from that is the Investigations and Sanctions Unit.

in short they have no clue who to complain to!

I need more letters especially from injured workers addressed

specifically to the Investigator Leah Bingham (best), also letters from

you doctors addressed to Ms. Bingham, btw it looks I lot more official

and less contrived if your letters are indeed addressed to the

investigator instead of me.

You guys and gals have all been great we are on a roll I would just like

to add more letters to the new bound document that I will present to the

actual Legislative committee during the up coming session specifically

the House Business and Labor Committee Chaired by Rep. Mike Schaulfer

who is very supportive and actually has made our four work comp bills

his committee bills! So please get me those letters send the original

to the investigator and send me a clean copy of the letter by mail.

Send your letters to me at 915 SE 19th Ave, Albany, OR 97322. The

letters should be addressed to the investigator as shown below;

Ms. Leah Bingham

Investigations and Sanctions Unit

Compliance Section

Dept. of Consumer & Business Services

Workers' Compensation Division

350 Winter Street NE, Rm 27

Salem, Oregon 97309-0405

Questions? Call me at 541-231-4528 Vern Saboe

No virus found in this incoming message.

Checked by AVG - http://www.avg.com

Version: 8.0.176 / Virus Database: 270.9.19/1853 - Release Date: 12/17/2008

8:31 AM

[Guest guest]

I can appreciate your frustration. However, it bothers me to see cursing on our professional listserv. Perhaps there's a way to describe your frustration with a different adjective. Many of us experience similar situations with patients we're treating.

Thanks,

Minga Guerrero

In a message dated 10/25/2009 9:07:21 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time, docwiese7@... writes:

Dear Vern,I wish someone could do something about these whore doctors that are in place for Saif and other insurance companies, they write horrible discriminating reports against the patient for money. There is no truth to if the patient is a malinger or not, because everyone is a malinger. These reports cut off the patients from disability. On the PIP claims it cuts payment to the doctors, after they have already invested many treatments. Now they have to go after the patient who has no money, nor disability. Worse yet is work comp though, they use these reports to destroy the patient and their claim. The attorneys know these same IME doctors, because they get their same reports. I have talked to numerous attorneys that have told me the same thing about how crooked it is, but they don't have the time or money to fight them. The patient and doctors get lost in this scam for the SAIF and insurance companies. How do you go after doctors that have become whores for the insurance companies? Dr. D.C

From: Vern Saboe <vsaboecomcast (DOT) net>Subject: "Steering of Injured Workers"Oregondcs Date: Sunday, October 25, 2009, 8:29 AM

Dear colleagues,

I have been working this issue since 2006 when I referred to this problem of employers and insurers requiring that injured workers go to the local occupational medical clinic, urgent care clinic, or company doctor/nurse never of course telling the injured worker that they get to choose their provider. If fact many times telling the injured worker then they asked that "no you can't see Dr. Saboe he is a chiropractor" etc., etc. Subsequently since 2006 there has been Administrative Rules Advisory Committee meetings with the first facilitating the complete re-write of all the documents that go to injured workers to clairify their treatment rights. And more recently now after my pointing out a loophole in those Admin Rules which resulted in injured workers not recieving this new documents I helped write for DCBS clearly explaining in lay terms thier treatment rights we have a Administrative Rule hearing tomorrow morning which I will give live testimony at.

What I need even though we have pursued the end of this hurtful anti-worker "steering" the problem continues. What I need is for you to continue to email me your stories of how this or that worker was told by this or that "big box" store that they had to go here or there for treatment or whatever other employer. I just had two injured workers one told by the big box store and another from the home care company that they had to go to the local Occ Med Clinic.

You must help me keep the pressure on to finally end this activity which I believe has the most to do with why we see few work comp patietns even more so that the hurtful closed panel managed care organizations.....so....get me those stories.......and..wish us luck tomorrow!

Vern Saboe