Can I Get a Second Medical Opinion for My Workplace Injury?

The injury law firm of Silverman, McDonald & Friedman is here to help you obtain workers’ compensation benefits when you have been injured at work. We fight for injured workers throughout Delaware, including Wilmington, Newark, and Seaford.

When you visit your doctor, it is likely that you trust their judgement as a trained physician. But, there are sometimes when you want a second opinion whether it is for surgery or a complicated case. In workers’ compensation, getting a second opinion can be a little more complicated.

In Delaware, the workers’ compensation program provides partial wage-replacement temporary disability benefits for workers who have an occupational illness, or who have suffered a workplace injury. It also includes medical benefits, vocational rehabilitation benefits for workers whose injuries require that they become trained in a new occupation. Workers’ compensation also provides death benefits to the dependents of workers who have died in workplace accidents. These benefits are paid through the employer’s workers’ compensation insurance company.

Workers in Delaware who sustain a workplace injury or who suffer from an occupational disease are seen by physicians who are in the employ of the workers’ compensation employer. These doctors may not specialize in the area of medicine that applies to their injury. They may also be recommending a more aggressive course of treatment than the worker feels comfortable with. Getting a second opinion might serve to put the worker’s mind at ease about the treatment, and it might give them more clarity about their condition.

An injured worker may request that the workers’ compensation insurer cover a second medical opinion, but there is no guarantee that they will approve it, nor is there a guarantee that the second doctor will not be as equally biased as the first because they are also employed by the insurance company. The worker can pay for a second opinion out of their pocket, but there is also no guarantee that the insurer will take the opinion of the worker’s doctor over their own physician.

Typically, insurance company’s agendas are not hidden. They are in the business to make money and often that motivation takes precedence over patient care. The patient is concerned for their own health and wellbeing, and they do not want to be forced to return to work before they feel able to, and they want appropriate care for an injury they sustained while working for their employer.

A worker who would like to get a second opinion about their injury can contact a Delaware workers’ compensation lawyer who will represent their interests.

If you have been hurt at work and you have questions about your workers’ compensation claim, you are invited to call Silverman, McDonald & Friedman at 302-888-2900 or complete our contact form now. Our Wilmington, Newark, and Seaford workers’ compensation attorneys are ready to give you the legal representation you need and deserve.