doodlebea  05-25-2012
12:38 PM ET (US)
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Snowed I put my number at the top of each sheet.Three different file numbers 3 different claim with work comp and 1 personal illness. I believe they do not want to spend the money rehabbing me since I am already on SSDI and have filed for FERS. I think they are stalling the claim/job offer/ rehab so My FERS gets approved or disapproved so they do not have to waste their time and money on me. The appeal will take months or years and that bides them time. That is just my opinion. You get to where you think like them which is really SICK, when you deal with them long enough. I tell people I used to be nice until I filed for Work Comp/ started working for the Postal Service.THANKS
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Snowed 05-25-2012
08:17 AM ET (US)
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Newone-
Generally there is not a required waiting period but I have heard waiting at least one year from your last MMI date is a good idea. Finding a doctor who can do this rating appropriately is a good idea. Did you show the DMA rating to your own doctor?? These ratings are complicated at times and maybe if your doctor is willing to learn, he will do better the next time.
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Newone
05-25-2012
07:21 AM ET (US)
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KIMMIEK, thanks again for your replies. I too, think I can do it myself. When you say I would have to do the physical, are you referring to an IME or just another physical to support another impairment rating? A recent nerve conduction test supports my condition is worsening.
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Snowed 05-24-2012
10:58 PM ET (US)
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doodlebea-
The way you get documentation into your file is to put your claim number in the upper right hand corner of EACH sheet. Stapling will not help. You can also upload your documents directly into your own file via e-comp. When you send something to OWCP there is likely someone opening your letter, removing the staple and putting your documents on a pile along with hundreds of others. Then the pile is likely sent to another person who scans them into the system by keying in the file # page by page. No number?, you might get someone to find the correct file, but I doubt it.
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KIMMIEK 05-24-2012
10:25 PM ET (US)
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Hello Newone
I think you can do this yourself -- attorneys feel you need their help with stuff like this.. but even a rep can do which is more reasonable and that is only if you see conflict. But you can contact OWCP and ask them for another shot at increasing and updating due to degeneration. You would then have to do the physical. Maybe you need to have another medical examiner evaluate you.. like Doctor Ellis for example.
kk
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Newone
05-24-2012
09:00 PM ET (US)
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KIMMIEK, yes the 6th edition was used. But when I compared my doctors report to that of the DMA's my doctor did not do the calculations correctly. There's a lot going on in the calculations from the DMA that my doctor omitted, which tells me even though he used the 6th edition he is not familiar with it or what they want. So, am I safe from being charged with overpayment since the 6th edition was used?
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KIMMIEK 05-24-2012
08:27 PM ET (US)
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Hi again newone Did your Attending Physician base your percentage of impairment using the 6th edition? And when they downgraded the percentage, they would have sent you several pages.. like a medical report from the OWCP medical unit with their doctors reasoning why it was downgraded according to the body part. I am now going to post information off of another site.. so you get an understanding of what has now taken place in reference to the Schedule Award situation. The 6th Edition of the AMA guide eliminated recovery for the effects of a neck or low back injury. OWCP agreed that this was legally improper. However they adopted a rating system devised by a person outside the Agency to “remedy” this problem. This remedy has made recovery even more complex, time consuming, expensive and difficult for the Federal injured employee. This addition to the Guides is the July/August bulletin. AMA guide was basically written by persons associated with the insurance industry. In the development of the 6th edition guide there was no input by attorneys who represent injured workers. Many injured Federal workers want to know if there is a set amount for an injury. The answer sadly is NO. Injured workers want to know if the number of operations they have had makes a difference. The answer is sadly NO. Injured workers want to know if the length of time they are off work makes a difference. The answer is NO. Injured workers want to know if destruction of their life because of their injury makes a difference in their schedule award recovery. Again, answer is NO. Federal injured workers want to know if attorney representation makes a difference. The answer is YES. Max Guest, an attorney in Los Angeles, recently warned that since the 6th edition will give lower schedule awards than the 5th edition, OWCP may try to reclaim overpayment if the claimant claims an increase in an award and the 6th edition produces a lesser award than previously granted to the claimant under the 5th edition. The claimant must be aware of this potential. The claimant should never seek an increase in an award without attorney representation. http://www.dol.gov/owcp/dfec/AMAGuideEvalPermImpair6thEd.htmkk Edited 05-24-2012 08:51 PM
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newone
05-24-2012
07:39 PM ET (US)
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KIMMIEK, thanks so much for your warm welcoming and response. No, I did not file for a reconsideration, will that matter? My doctor asked for 30% and they gave me 12%. Do you mean he has to ask for 2% more than what they gave me? Thanks again!
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KIMMIEK 05-24-2012
06:57 PM ET (US)
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Doodle -- Can you contact me at my e-mail address
SWEETSWOO@comcast.net
I might be able to help you --
kk
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KIMMIEK 05-24-2012
06:55 PM ET (US)
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hello to you BYGBYRD and welcome to this forum
To answer your question.. nope.. there is no time limit to file but there must be at least a 2 percentage difference from the last Schedule award..Did you file for the OWCP to reconsider the percentage? I believe they give you a certain amount of time to refute the percentage and have them reconsider all the way to an ECAB decision.
kk
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BYGBYRD
05-24-2012
06:44 PM ET (US)
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Hello all,
Can anyone answer this question for me? I retired from PO in 2009 and received a SA in early 2011. The impairment rating was dramatically reduced from what my doctor submitted. My condition is worsening and my doctor says he will submit another impairment rating towards the end of the year. Is there a time frame in submitting SA's?
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doodlebea 05-24-2012
05:21 PM ET (US)
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ANY GOOD cheap lawyers? HaHA
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KIMMIEK 05-24-2012
04:23 PM ET (US)
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Doodle
The Gateway performance Cluster is the USPS injury office am I right on this...hmmm -- I would say at this point in time you again need to write to the OWCP agency and again have your Attending physician REFUTE all this garbage that is taking place here. I am seeing this over again with the ways the USPS is taking people off the OWCP PR and forcing a Constructive termination. I would say that someone is meddling around here and you need an attorney or a rep to look at all of this and sort it out.. At one point in my claims I ended up hiring an attorney and a Postal Advocate because it became clear to me I needed help and I needed the garbage they were doing to me to stop. I feel in your case it is time to bring on an attorney to appeal this .. but now I would be writing for help all the way up the OWCP ladder .. someone if meddling in your case. People that claim they medically know and have no business being involved or someone is forcing this situation to occur. According to what I have read in OWCP they must take into account your medical and physical conditions outside of OWCP as well as OWCP itself. And much of a human bodies physical conditions break down when there is a truama and instability and residual effects. Constant inflamation can cause other health conditions. Please seek council and start writing certified letters with return receipts up the OWCP ladder
kk
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doodlebea 05-24-2012
04:06 PM ET (US)
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I call OWCP London Kentucky because I have had trouble with information getting to them even if I send it certified. I had a revised job offer and asked them last week what was going on with my claim and that is when they told me verbally what was in my file .They said Victoria Ball from St Louis ( Gateway performance cluster, Injury compensation office) had put that information in my file. They read off the information from my file. I have sent my restrictions to them 3 times the last month. I put the OWCP claim from the web site that had my information on it and then stapled the Duty status report with a doctors narrative on 2 of 4 doctors. Remember they had the wrong claim number and date of injury on my job offer. I think they are trying to get me for not cooperating with the Rehab process. I called the rehab guy 2 hours before I met with him as verbally agreed to and informed OWCP that if his wife was at the meeting I was not going to continue with the meeting.I thought it was a violation of my privacy and it was not anything that had to do with her. I have wrote OWCP 3 times now explaining the wife was violating my privacy if she showed up at the meeting. Each time I write them I state I am willing to work with them on rehab. The meeting went off OK. The wife drove the rehab guy to the meeting but kept outside. I was OK with that . We had the meeting I cooperated. The next thing I know I was accused of not cooperating and also saying I was too disabled for rehabilitation. I denied saying that and did not say that. I got a letter to terminate my benefits and sent a polite letter( 2 ) stating I had cooperated by having/ going to the meeting and had not said I was too disabled for rehab. They are not recognizing my restrictions. They have told me repeatedly the job offer was for the shoulder and the doctor has released me for duty. I have 2 other OWCP claims with recent restrictions (from April and May)that needs to be addressed and also restrictions from a personal illness.I have put that in the reason for sending job offer back to OWCP. I also called to see if they had received my letter to get my OWCP and Rehabilitation file because when I talked to Angel Bogess she said the Rehab guy stated I was not cooperating and that I said I was too disabled to rehab and the rehab guy said Angela Bogess says that not him.So I hope to see which one said what in my file.I can not do anything but read up on the appeal process until I get my files and termination of benefits letter.I call constantly to see if the info has been received or has been sent as requested.It just so happen I have called about the last month every week for something as per their request on several calls. I contacted OPM and nothing is in my file yet.
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KIMMIEK 05-24-2012
02:31 PM ET (US)
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Doodle you can contact OPM -- they will give you an update.. by phone.. but they changed their phone number so contact them with the new number they gave on the letter.. You can get updates from their team tho
kk
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KIMMIEK 05-24-2012
02:29 PM ET (US)
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doodlebea.. I have a couple of questions for you. Who at the OWCP told you that you are using your leg wrong? My goodness.. they are not doctors and cannot and should not tell you anything.
Secondly why are you calling them once a week? Are you speaking to your claims Examiner who is telling you medically what to do and what not to do?
This makes no sense to me when you have SET job restrictions that someone would tell you what your doctor told you not to do. Plus I am wondering if because you call them constantly, problems might be arising from this.
KK
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