Chapter 300
AN ACT
HB 2943
Relating to standards of conduct for
providers of independent medical examinations in workers’ compensation claims;
amending ORS 656.328; and declaring an emergency.
Be It Enacted by the People of
the State of
SECTION 1. ORS 656.328 is amended to read:
656.328. (1) The
Director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services shall maintain a
list of providers that are authorized to perform independent medical
examinations.
(2) A provider on the
list maintained by the director under subsection (1) of this section may be
excluded from the list by the director after a finding of a violation of
standards of professional conduct for conducting independent medical
examinations adopted by the appropriate health professional regulatory board. The
director shall adopt by rule standards of professional conduct for providers
performing independent medical examinations if [a] the appropriate health professional regulatory board has
not adopted standards pertaining to independent medical examinations[,]. The rules adopted by the director
under this subsection may be consistent with the guidelines of conduct
published by the [American Board of
Independent Medical Examiners] Independent Medical Examination Association
in effect on [January 1, 2006, shall
apply as standards pertaining to providers conducting independent medical
examinations that are licensed by that board] the effective date of this
2007 Act. The decision of the director to exclude a provider from the list
maintained under subsection (1) of this section is
subject to review under ORS 656.704.
(3) The director, in
consultation with the advisory committee on medical care of the Workers’
Compensation Division of the Department of Consumer and Business Services, the
Workers’ Compensation Management-Labor Advisory Committee and affected interest
groups shall develop, and the director shall adopt by rule:
(a) Professional
licensing training requirements and educational materials for physicians
participating in the workers’ compensation system and conducting independent
medical examinations required under ORS 656.325 (1); and
(b) A process for
investigating and reviewing complaints about independent medical examinations
conducted under the requirements of ORS 656.325 (1) that includes, but is not
limited to, standards for referring complaints to the appropriate health
professional regulatory board and an appeals process for a physician who
disagrees with an action taken by the director under subsection (2) of this
section.
SECTION 2. This 2007 Act being necessary for the
immediate preservation of the public peace, health and safety, an emergency is
declared to exist, and this 2007 Act takes effect on its passage.
Approved by the Governor June 4, 2007
Filed in the office of Secretary of State June 5, 2007
Effective date June 4, 2007
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