#4 What does my patient need to know about the Independent Medical Exam doctor, who is also known as an IME doctor?
QUESTION: What does my patient need to know about the Independent Medical Exam doctor, who is also known as an IME doctor?
ANSWER:
What does my patient need to know about the Independent Medical Exam doctor, who is also known as an IME doctor?
There are some critically important things for your patient to know about the IME doctor before attending the IME. They should first know that the IME has been ordered by the PIP carrier solely for the purpose of gaining justification to stop your patient’s treatment. The IME doctor is chosen from the insurance company’s network of doctors who will perform exams and write reports for them.
The exam is not ‘independent’ and it is not a neutral assessment.
Your patient also needs to know that the IME is only an exam appointment — not a treatment appointment. Most people have never had the experience of seeing a medical provider who’s not examining them for the purpose of helping them get better.
They need to understand that if it is their own insurance company that is requiring them to attend the IME, the doctor doing their exam is not looking out for your patient and is not on their side.
The main purpose of the adjuster for the insurance company sending your patient to an IME is to minimize the payments that the insurance company will have to pay on your patient’s personal injury claim.
Unfortunately, even though your patient was injured, it doesn’t make a difference with how the adjuster manages the claim.
Also, it’s very important for your patient to know that there is no patient-doctor relationship with the IME doctor. That means there is no confidentiality and again the IME doctor is chosen by and working for the insurance company.
Because of the IME doctor’s relationship to your patient’s PIP carrier, again, they’re not neutral. They’re examining your patient for one reason and one reason only and that is to document what your patients say during the exam for their report to justify the insurance company stopping your PIP benefits.
Lastly and critically important to what your patient can do to protect their PIP benefits during their IME is to keep their responses to the IME doctor’s questions short and succinct. Most of us are accustomed to answering our healthcare professional’s questions with complete and thorough responses so they can provide us with the best care possible. That is not the case when it comes to an IME doctor.
Reminding your patient that the IME doctor is not seeing them to help them.
They’re examining your patient to get answers from your patient that can be used by the insurance company to cut off their PIP benefits.
It is important to your patient’s credibility that they are honest and answer the questions completely, but keeping answers short and to the point will help protect them and their benefits.
We’re here to be a bridge of support for you and your patients.
We have developed a robust library of information for your patients who have been injured in an accident, which can be found in the INJURED? START HERE portal on our website.
There are 40 topic-focused articles, with accompanying videos, organized into the four categories that include the personal injury claim-related questions we’re asked most often, which include:
- Top 10 Personal Injury Claim Mistakes to Avoid
- What You Need to Know About Your Claim
- How Are My Medical Bills & Wage Loss Paid
- How to Prepare for Your Independent Medical Exam
Each article provides advice and guidelines to help your patients navigate each phase of the personal injury claims process. Whether we represent your patient or not, we are passionate about them knowing how to protect their rights, get the medical care they need, and avoid the mistakes that can harm their personal injury claim.
Each article provides advice and guidelines to help your patients navigate each phase of the personal injury claims process. Whether we represent your patient or not, we are passionate about them knowing how to protect their rights, get the medical care they need, and avoid the mistakes that can harm their personal injury claim.
Additionally, if it would be helpful to have the information we feature on our website available in your office to pass along to your patients, we’ve developed brochures for each of the four article series -- in both English and Spanish that we’re happy to send to your office. Please complete the form below and we’ll get them out to you promptly.
