When the workers’ comp doctor minimizes symptoms, sends someone back too soon, or refuses testing, the natural question is: “Can I get another doctor to look at this?” The answer depends on what you mean by second opinion. A private consult, an authorized referral, an IME, and a Board-ordered medical dispute are different tools.
Key takeaways
- Indiana is usually employer-directed for workers’ comp medical care. The employer’s duty to furnish treatment appears in Indiana Code § 22-3-3-4[1].
- A second opinion is not automatically the same thing as authorized care. If the carrier does not approve it, payment can become a dispute.
- You should document the medical reason. “I do not like the doctor” is weaker than “my symptoms are worsening, restrictions do not match my job, and no imaging has been ordered.”
- IMEs are different. Indiana law separately addresses examinations requested in the claim process under Indiana Code § 22-3-3-6[2].
- State Form 38911 starts a seven-day clock. If the carrier proposes ending TTD checks, you must send a written disagreement to the Board and the employer within seven days of receiving the form, and a timely objection can lead to a Board-arranged independent medical examination.
- Ask before you create unpaid medical bills. A private opinion can help, but it should be used strategically.
Who controls the workers’ comp doctor in Indiana?
In many Indiana workers’ comp claims, the employer or insurance carrier chooses the authorized treating physician. That is why our broader guide on who chooses the doctor in an Indiana workers’ compensation claim is a useful starting point. The authorized doctor’s records often drive restrictions, treatment approvals, temporary total disability, MMI, and impairment.
That does not mean the injured worker has no options. It means the worker needs to use the right path. If the authorized doctor is ignoring a body part, refusing reasonable diagnostics, or releasing someone to work that exceeds their actual limitations, the issue should be documented and raised promptly.
Second-opinion options compared
| Option | When it may help | Main caution |
|---|---|---|
| Ask the adjuster for authorization | When symptoms are not improving, diagnosis is unclear, or a specialist is needed. | Get approval in writing before assuming workers’ comp will pay. |
| Request a referral from the authorized doctor | When the treating doctor agrees a specialist, imaging, or therapy change is appropriate. | The referral should be clear and tied to the work injury. |
| Use a private consult | When you need independent guidance or the authorized care seems incomplete. | The bill may not be covered unless later accepted, ordered, or resolved. |
| Challenge care through the Board process | When treatment, restrictions, or medical authorization cannot be resolved informally. | The evidence must show why the requested care is reasonable and related. |
| Respond to an IME | When the carrier relies on an exam to stop treatment, end TTD, or dispute impairment. | An IME is an evaluation, not a normal treating relationship. |
| Object to a State Form 38911 termination notice | When the carrier sends written notice that it intends to stop TTD or TPD benefits. | Seven days from receipt to notify the Board and the employer in writing; silence ends the benefits. |
Signs a second opinion may be worth discussing
A second opinion may be useful when the diagnosis does not match the symptoms, pain is spreading or worsening, conservative care has stalled, a return-to-work note ignores job demands, or the doctor refuses to address a disputed body part. It can also matter when a worker is placed at maximum medical improvement even though meaningful treatment questions remain. For more on that stage, see our article on maximum medical improvement in Indiana workers’ comp.
Medical details matter. A back injury may require different proof than a shoulder tear, knee injury, hand injury, or repetitive-motion condition. Delventhal’s workers’ comp pages on back and neck injuries, shoulder injuries, knee injuries, and repetitive motion injuries explain how documentation often changes the dispute.
How to request a second opinion without hurting the claim
- Explain the specific medical concern: worsening symptoms, no improvement, unclear diagnosis, unsafe restrictions, or missing referral.
- Keep the request tied to the accepted work injury and affected body parts.
- Ask whether the carrier will authorize the consult before scheduling if payment matters.
- Do not skip authorized appointments while seeking another view.
- Keep copies of work notes, restrictions, imaging reports, therapy notes, and symptom changes.
- Tell the truth about prior conditions. An aggravation can still be real, but hidden history damages credibility.
Can I pay for my own doctor?
Sometimes, yes. Injured workers often have the practical ability to see a doctor using health insurance or cash. The harder question is whether that opinion becomes part of the workers’ comp claim and whether the cost is reimbursable. A private consult may help identify missing treatment, support restrictions, or explain why the authorized doctor’s opinion is incomplete. But it can also create billing issues, lien issues, or conflicting records.
If you are thinking about paying for a second opinion, it is worth talking through the strategy first with an Indiana workers’ compensation attorney. That is especially true if benefits have been denied, treatment has been cut off, or the carrier is using a report against you. Our guide on what to do if your Indiana workers’ comp claim is denied covers the bigger dispute path.
How is this different from an IME?
An independent medical examination is not the same as choosing a new doctor. An IME is usually requested to evaluate disputed issues in the claim. The doctor may address causation, MMI, restrictions, impairment, or future care. Indiana Code § 22-3-3-6[3] addresses examination procedures and consequences in certain circumstances, including suspension issues if an employee refuses or obstructs an exam.
If you have an IME coming up, read what not to say to an IME doctor in Indiana workers’ comp. If the problem is the regular comp doctor, read what not to say to a workers’ comp doctor. The communication strategy is similar: be accurate, specific, and consistent without exaggerating or minimizing.
When the carrier sends State Form 38911: seven days to object and ask for an IME
One situation turns the second-opinion question into a deadline. When an employer or carrier wants to stop temporary total disability (TTD) or temporary partial disability checks for a reason other than a return to work, the worker’s death, a refused exam or refused suitable job, or the benefit maximum, Indiana Code § 22-3-3-7(c)[4] requires written notice on a form approved by the Worker’s Compensation Board. That form is State Form 38911, the Board’s report of TTD/TPD termination, and it usually arrives with the authorized doctor’s release or maximum-medical-improvement report that the carrier is relying on.
The statute gives the worker seven days from receipt of the notice to send a written disagreement to both the Board and the employer. The notice has to reach both; if it is not received in time, the benefits end. If the disagreement is timely, the Board first contacts the parties and tries to resolve it. If that does not work within ten days, the Board arranges an independent medical examination by a physician the parties agree on or, failing agreement, one the Board appoints. If the examiner finds the worker is no longer temporarily disabled, or can return to work the employer has actually offered, or if the worker does not show up for the exam, TTD may be terminated. Either side can ask the Board for a hearing if it disagrees with the examiner’s opinion, and the employer is not required to keep paying TTD for more than fourteen days past its proposed termination date unless the examiner finds the worker still temporarily disabled and unable to do the work offered.
For the worker who feels the authorized doctor released them too soon, this is the closest thing Indiana workers’ comp offers to a second opinion the carrier cannot simply ignore. A few practical points:
- Count the seven days from the day you receive the form, not the date typed on it, and do not wait for a lawyer’s appointment to respond. The Board’s informal-disputes page[5] explains that the disagreement can be made by checking the options on the mailed Form 38911 and returning it to the Board, or by submitting it online through the Board’s “Dispute Termination of Benefits” service, which the Board prefers.
- Mark that you want the IME. The form lets you request the examination. An attorney responding through the Board’s online Gateway can also preserve the IME right when it is too early to use it, for example while treatment is ongoing or a return to work is being attempted, and set the exam later.
- Understand what the exam decides. A Form 38911 IME answers whether you are still temporarily disabled. It is not a new treating doctor, it does not by itself resolve impairment, causation, or surgery disputes, and skipping it can end the benefits.
- Keep treating and keep the records. The examiner reads the authorized doctor’s chart, restrictions, imaging, therapy notes, and your job demands. The documentation steps earlier in this article are what make a Form 38911 objection work.
Our guides on when Indiana workers’ comp can stop TTD checks and what happens when the authorized doctor denies or delays surgery cover the surrounding benefit and treatment disputes.
Frequently asked questions
Can workers’ comp deny payment for a second opinion?
Yes. If the second opinion was not authorized, the carrier may dispute payment. That does not mean the opinion is useless, but you should understand the risk before scheduling.
What if the workers’ comp doctor says I can work but I cannot do my job?
Document the exact job tasks that conflict with the restrictions: lifting, bending, standing, reaching, climbing, tools, production pace, or safety-sensitive duties. The dispute may require updated restrictions, employer job-duty information, or Board involvement.
Can I switch doctors because I do not trust the authorized doctor?
Distrust alone may not be enough. Stronger arguments focus on medical necessity, incomplete evaluation, worsening symptoms, unreasonable treatment delay, or restrictions that do not match the injury.
Should I bring a second opinion to my lawyer?
Yes. A second opinion can affect treatment, TTD, settlement, MMI, impairment, and litigation strategy. Bring all records, not just the part that helps.
What happens if I miss the seven-day deadline on State Form 38911?
Under Indiana Code § 22-3-3-7[6](c), TTD benefits are terminated if the Board and the employer do not receive a written disagreement within seven days of your receipt of the notice. The dispute itself is not over. A worker can still ask the Board for informal assistance or file an Application for Adjustment of Claim within the limitation period, but the automatic Board-arranged IME is tied to the timely objection, so act on the form the day it arrives and get advice promptly.
Bottom line
In Indiana workers’ comp, a second opinion can be valuable, but it should be requested carefully. The safest path is to identify the medical problem, preserve the authorized-care record, and avoid creating unpaid bills without a plan. If your work injury care in Fort Wayne is not making sense, Delventhal Law Office can review the next step.
This article is general information about Indiana workers’ compensation. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship.
