Understanding the AMA Guides in Workers' Compensation

With Understanding the AMA Guides in Workers' Compensation, you'll develop an even better understanding of the new standards, so you'll argue cases more successfully. There are pages of detail on the distinction between 'permanent impairment' and disability, the circumstances under which physicians may express an opinion concerning disability, spine evaluations under the new injury model, and more. You'll also get practical answers to questions such as: 'How do the AMA Guides rate degrees of impairment?' and 'How do they establish a monetary value for a totally impaired body part?' And that's just the beginning. Plus, the book contains state-by-state case-specific information, checklists, and sample proofs. Highlights include:

• California's adoption of the Fifth Edition of the AMA Guides as part of its 2004 Workers' Compensation Reform
• Board Certification in use of the AMA Guides and an IME physician's qualifications
• How to handle impairments not specifically covered under the AMA Guides
• Additional difficult cross-examination questions for impairment evaluators
• New sample proof for lumbar spinal cord injury
• How to rate impairment in a claimant who refuses surgery that would likely be of benefit
• Whether a rating under the A.A.O.S. manual is sufficient to award benefits
• Rating TMJ under the AMA Guides and the Recommended Guide to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment of the Temporomandibular Joint
• Whether failure to follow the AMA Guides is a question of law or fact
• Whether a rating physician can invalidate Range of Motion measurements based upon the doctor's observations and clinical experience
• Whether an administrative law judge (ALJ) can adjust an impairment rating if he or she finds that the rating physician misapplied the AMA Guides
• Updated case law, statutes, and regulations