A medical legal evaluation is conducted by either a Panel Qualified Medical-Legal Evaluator (Panel QME) which is available to both represented and unrepresented injured workers, or is conducted by an Agreed Medical-Legal Evaluator (AME) which is available only to injured workers represented by an attorney.

A medical legal evaluator is not a treating physician for the claim but rather is a physician who offers medical legal opinions on issues such as temporary disability, permanent disability and need for medical treatment.

Medical legal reports are often twenty or more pages in length. The Panel QME or AME creates this report after both a thorough history and evaluation of the injured worker. The evaluator also reviews the medical reports in connection with the work injury and may also review medical records generated before the work injury that involve same body part in question. For example, if an injured worker suffered a lumbar spine injury at work and has treated for his or her lumbar spine prior to the work injury, the evaluator may review these records as well in making his or her determination as to permanent disability.

When an injured worker has an attorney, his or her attorney reviews the panel QME or AME report very carefully. Then, if necessary, the attorney can write to the Panel QME or AME to request additional information or may set the evaluator’s deposition if necessary. For more information contact an experienced workers’ compensation attorney in Sacramento at the Law Office of Bowman and Associates.

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