Getting the Treating Doctor to Address Work Status

You very likely come across the scenario where a treating doctor has continued to examine and treat the Claimant regularly, but for reasons unknown has not addressed his patient’s work status.

Your insured may also be seeking a treating doctor work release, as they have light duty options available to return their employee to work post-injury.

There is a solution to both problems, and it involves a seldom-used form and process under the DWC rules.

The applicable rule is DWC Rule 129.5(g)(1), which provides in part that the treating doctor “shall file the Work Status Report (DWC-73)…within seven days of the day of receipt of functional job descriptions from the employer listing available modified duty positions that the employer is able to offer the injured employee.

The form that your insured can use to provide those functional job descriptions is the DWC-74 (reproduced below).

Notably, the bona fide offer rule (129.6) references the DWC-74 form in subsection (a).

We recommend that employers who are able complete the DWC-74, send it to the treating doctor under Rule 129.5(g)(1), and then attach both the resulting DWC-73 and DWC-74 to their written bona fide offer.

Please feel free to contact our offices with any questions about this process: gqs@fol.com.