I saw something new in the world of workers’ compensation last month; a “work restriction agreement” between an employee and a doctor. The agreement raised my eyebrows when I first saw it and it raised my eyebrows again when I dug it up to write this post.

The more I thought about this agreement, the more I saw the handiwork of a nurse case manager. Nurse case managers have all sorts of advantages over injured in workers in a workers’ compensation claim. In my mind, this agreement really seemed like running up the proverbial score.

So why did this agreement rub me the wrong way?

Trust and stigma in workers’ compensation

When I saw the agreement, I thought about the agreements that doctors often make patients sign in order to receive opioid pain medication. To some extent those agreements are well-intentioned because they can inform patients about how to take medication properly.  But the agreements have been criticized for undermining the doctor-patient relationship and stigmatizing users of prescription drugs as potential addicts. Injured workers are equated with drug addicts.

Like drug addiction, issues about doctor-patient trust and stigma are major issues for injured workers. Many injured workers refuse to claim workers compensation benefits out of fear as being stigmatized as freeloaders looking to “milk the system”. But even if workers overcome that stigma and claim benefits, most workers are surprised to find how little privacy they have regarding their health history once they claim benefits.

The role of the nurse case manager

One of the most visible examples of the relative lack of privacy in workers’ compensation claims is the nurse case manager. A nurse case manager is usually a nurse hired on behalf of the workers compensation insurer, but it can be someone employed directly by your employer. This nurse case manager will suddenly pop up in the examination room when you visit your doctor or a doctor about a work injury.

We tell our clients to tell that nurse case manager to scram (politely of course). That might be less of an option if the nurse case manager works at your company and is more or less in management. An employee may feel pressured to allow a company nurse case manager in an exam room out of fear of losing their job or being disciplined. Nebraska law makes it illegal for employers to retaliate against employees for claiming workers’ compensation. I’ve never seen a case related to an employee telling an in-house nurse case manager to leave an examination room, but it could be an interesting case.

But even if you can get the nurse case manager out of the exam room, you can’t stop a nurse case manager from talking with your doctor privately. So, what is it that the doctor and the nurse case manager talk about? Oftentimes it’s whether an employee can return to work. That’s where these “work restriction agreements” come into play.

How the work restriction agreement works and can work

I think nurse case managers are driving the bus on “work restriction agreements.” Some doctors like nurse case managers. I think part of reason some doctors like nurse case managers is oftentimes a nurse case manager will have access to written job descriptions that help doctors to tailor work restrictions.

The work restriction agreement I saw incorporated a written job description. The agreement contained a provision that the workers work restrictions were just exactly as described by the doctors note. This would limit the employee’s ability to testify to the extent of their own restrictions at trial.

In addition, the agreement contained a provision that the employee would refuse work that exceeded her restrictions. Interestingly enough, the agreement created no requirement that the employer not ask or force the employee to exceed their stated work restrictions.  Overall the document created obligations for the employee, but none for the employer. (If this sounds like collusion, it is and you can read more about why this collusion is usually permitted here.)

Given the one-sided and legalistic nature of the “work restriction agreement”, I am not surprised it showed up in cross-examination like questioning from an employer’s lawyer in a workers’ compensation deposition. The nurse case manager was essentially helping to create what amounts to attorney work-product to be used in a workers’ compensation case. (It could also be used in an employment law claim as well.) But while a “work restriction agreement” is a fairly blatant effort to create evidence, nurse case managers have more subtle tactics.

In Nebraska, medical dictation or charting can be admitted into evidence in a workers’ compensation case without worries about hearsay or foundation objections. A good nurse case manager can influence doctors to create medical evidence that is helpful for an employer.

Why nurse case managers have clout

Of course, insurers have more blunt tactics to influence medical evidence – they pay the bill. I remember sending a questionnaire out to a doctor in a case because their dictation wasn’t enough to help prove my client’s case. I was bluntly told by clinic staff that since “workers compensation already paid the bill” that they saw no reason why they needed to fill out additional paperwork. Paying the bills gives insurers a lot of influence and make their nurse case managers seem a lot more persuasive than they would be otherwise.

Many nurse case managers also have long-standing relationships with doctors which leads doctors to trust nurse case managers. It seems nurse case managers aren’t happy with their advantages and are seeking to further their advantage over injured workers through the use of forms like “work restriction agreements” that further stigmatize injured workers.