"No doctor will take my case."

Why it happens

Workers' compensation billing is slower and more administratively demanding than group health, and every treatment request goes through utilization review. Some practices simply decline the work.

That is a business decision by the practice. It is not a statement about your claim.

What to do

Get the current MPN provider list. The employer must give you access to it, and it must be current. Ask in writing.

Then switch inside the network — after the first visit you may change to any other MPN physician without asking permission. This is the most under-used right in the treatment process. How the MPN works.

Document every refusal. Name of the practice, date, what they said. A list of five providers who declined or had no appointment is the evidence of an access failure.

When you can go outside the network

Emergency care — always.

Defective or missing MPN notice. Notice obligations are specific, and a defective or missing notice is a recognized basis for treating outside the network.

Failure of access — no appropriate specialist, no available appointment within the required timeframes, no usable provider list. This is where your list of refusals matters.

A valid predesignation made before the injury. Requirements.

And after a successful MPN independent medical review, where § 4616.4 permits treatment "from a physician of his or her choice from within or outside the medical provider network," with the employer liable for the cost.

While you are sorting it out

Do not go untreated. A gap in treatment is used against you on causation, on credibility, and on permanent disability.

§ 5402(c) — up to $10,000 in treatment the employer must authorize within one working day of your claim form, and continue until liability is accepted or rejected.

And your own health insurance can bridge, subject to a possible lien against your recovery — a manageable problem. Being untreated is not.