As disability questions go, this one is a doozy: are “independent” medical exams truly independent?
To answer that question, you first need to know what I’m talking about. When you make a disability claim with your insurance company, there’s a good chance that you’ll be doing so with a statement from your doctor describing the issue that you have. This is your proof – your evidence – that you are suffering from a disability.
Most claimants don’t even think past that. They figure that if a medical doctor has signed off saying they have a disability, that’s the end of the story. But any disability attorney will tell you that insurance companies aren’t just going to pay based on the word of your doctor. Chances are, they will want to schedule more appointments with their disability insurance doctors. These are called independent medical exams.