Work Injuries
Dr. Muldavin has been an active leader in Workers Compensation since 1988. Dr. Muldavin and his staff are sensitive to the needs of injured workers and familiar with the complexities of the Workers’ Compensation system. Major reform seems to be the rule in the Workers Compensation system with SB899 (passed in 2004) and SB863 (passed in 2012) significantly affecting benefits for the injured worker. Generally, for injured workers that do not fully heal and have reached Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI), their disability percentages have decreased and they are now given a voucher instead of a full vocational rehabilitation program if they are deemed a Qualified Injured Worker (QIW). Chiropractors are still considered Primary Treating Physicians (PTP) for all injuries occurring after 2004 until the injured worker has reached the 24-visit limit.
What is a secondary physician?
A secondary physician is a doctor who treats an injured worker at the request or referral of a PTP. For instance, If I am the PTP, I can refer to a pain management physician as a secondary physician for treatment I cannot provide, such as injections or medications. On the other hand, a PTP who is an occupational or pain management physician can refer to our office and I will treat as a secondary physician for services they cannot provide. Dr. Muldavin has worked as a PTP and secondary physician as a trusted referral source for many medical and occupational groups throughout Northern California.
Treatment/Evaluation
Dr. Muldavin has not only successfully treated hundreds of injured workers as a Primary Treating Physician but also has been a respected industrial evaluator since 1991, performing hundreds of evaluations including Agreed Medical Evaluations (AMEs). Dr. Muldavin has also been a Qualified Medical Evaluator (QME) since the inception of the program in 1992, for the State of California. Dr. Muldavin works with occupational medicine and pain management physicians in the area, including Kaiser.
Medical Provider Networks (MPNs)
Medical Provider Networks (MPNs) were created in 2004 based on SB899, which was a sweeping law attempting to reform workers compensation. This law states that employers/insurance companies could create their own networks of medical providers (MPNs) and would thus have more control of medical care and presumably lower costs. In other words, injured workers (employees) choose from a list of providers given to them by the insurance company and cannot go out this network, even if they had a pre-designated physician or chiropractor. The exceptions to this are if this list of providers was not readily available to the employee (within 1-3 days) or the list did not contain someone geographically close to the employee OR did not contain the type of physician the injured worker wanted. In January of 2014, the new law (SB863) mandates that ALL MPNs must be clearly listed online so they will be able to choose who they want from the MPN list and not from a list that the insurance company gives them. Fortunately, Dr. Muldavin is on the majority of MPNs, including State Compensation Insurance Fund, which is the largest in the state of California and insures all state workers.
Pre-designation of Your Personal Chiropractor
Pre-designation has been changed and has been strengthened by the newest law (SB863) passed in August of 2012. Pre-designation of your personal Chiropractor is a form you can fill out (ask our office for the form) which states that in the event of a work place injury you can go to your Chiropractor as the Primary Treating Physician (PTP) for your injury. In the past, if the physician or chiropractor were not part of the MPN then you could not go to them. The new law states that an employee can bypass the insurance company’s MPN list if they have pre-designated prior to the date of injury. Also, you do not have to wait 30 days to go to the Chiropractor or physician of your choosing (when pre-designated), you only have to go to a single visit with the Chiropractor or physician assigned by your insurance company before seeing your pre-designated Chiropractor. In other words, your employer/insurance company has the legal right to send you to the physician of their choosing (from their MPN) for the initial exam only. Many times, the insurance companies will allow you to go directly to the pre-designated Chiropractor or physician.
Rehabilitation of the Injured Worker
Dr. Muldavin utilizes functional rehabilitation exercises, including Dynamic Neuromuscular Stabilization (DNS), taught by Dr. Kolar at the Prague School of Rehabilitation. He detects compensatory faulty movement patterns through his functional movement screen (FMS) and examination procedures. Dr. Muldavin and his staff not only treat the overall pain of the injured worker but works to bridge the gap between the injured worker’s current capacity and the functional demands of his or her employment.
Our office is equipped with a treadmill and an area for rehabilitation exercises. We also have state of the art physical therapy equipment including massage therapy, electromuscle stimulation (EMS), super pulse laser, ultrasound, and motorized traction to help reduce muscle inflammation, reduce pain and accelerate healing.