independent medical review News

California Workers’ Comp Independent Medical Review Volume Rose in First Half of 2023

A review of the Independent Medical Review process used to resolve California workers’ compensation medical disputes shows the number of IMR decision letters rose 4.1% in the first six months of 2023 compared to the first half of 2022 after …

Few California Workers’ Comp Treatment Request Denials Overturned

Few medical treatment denials in California workers’ compensation were overturned last year, a review released on Wednesday shows. The California Division of Workers’ Compensation posted an annual report on the department’s Independent Medical Review program, which describes IMR program activity …

California Workers’ Comp Independent Medical Review Volume Fell in First Half of 2022

After hitting a record low in 2021, the number of independent medical reviews used to resolve California workers’ comp medical disputes continued to decline in the first half of 2022 according to the California Workers’ Compensation Institute. California law requires …

Report: Sharp Drop in California Workers’ Comp Independent Medical Reviews

A report from the California Workers’ Compensation Institute on the state’s independent medical review process used to resolve workers’ comp medical disputes shows the number of IMR decision letters hit an all-time low in 2021. The drop comes as pharmaceutical …

Study: Sharp Drop in California Workers’ Comp Independent Medical Reviews

The number of Independent Medical Review determination letters, a process used to resolve California workers’ compensation medical disputes, fell sharply in prescription drug disputes by 11.3% from 2018 to 2019, with data from the first quarter of 2020 showing the …

Doctor’s Alleged Fraud Scheme Throws Medical Claims Review Process into Doubt

For years, Spyros Panos seemed like a successful orthopedic surgeon, seeing dozens of patients a day and bringing in millions of dollars in fees for his suburban New York medical group. In fact, he was inflating charges and billing for …

Report on California’s Independent Medical Review Shows Continued Progress

An annual progress report from the California Department of Workers’ Compensation’s Independent Medical Review program shows it’s working as intended. IMR is a medical dispute resolution process that uses medical expertise to obtain consistent, evidence-based decisions and is a component …

California Workers’ Comp Medical Review Volume Fell Slightly in 2017

New data on the Independent Medical Review process used to resolve California workers’ compensation medical disputes show that IMR volume dipped for the first time ever in 2017, but the outcomes were unchanged as IMR physicians again upheld 91.2 percent …

Study Shows California Workers’ Comp Medical Review Volume May Be Leveling off

The volume of workers’ compensation independent medical reviews in California appears to be tapering off, a new study shows. The IMR process was established by California lawmakers to resolve medical disputes. A study from the California Workers’ Compensation Institute shows …

California Workers’ Comp Medical Review Runs Through 13K Disputes Each Month

A new progress report from the California Department of Industrial Relations on the department’s independent medical review program shows that 13,000 decisions run through the medical dispute resolution process each month. The report, 2017 Independent Medical Review Report: Analysis of …