Current through September 16, 2024
1. The designation of a rating physician or
chiropractic physician pursuant to NRS 616C.490 must be in writing or by
electronic communication.
2. To
qualify for designation, a physician or chiropractic physician must:
(a) Possess the qualifications required of a
physician or chiropractic physician who is appointed to the panel of physicians
and chiropractic physicians established pursuant to NRS 616C.090 and NAC
616C.003.
(b) Demonstrate a special
competence and interest in industrial health by:
(1) Completing:
(I) An appropriate level of training, as
determined by the Administrator, related to industrial health from a nationally
recognized program that provides training related to industrial health;
or
(II) Three years or more of
experience concerning industrial health in private practice. The Administrator
shall determine whether the experience in private practice concerning
industrial health is sufficient to qualify for designation as a rating
physician or chiropractic physician on a case-by-case basis.
(2) Except as otherwise provided
in subsection 3, successfully completing a course on rating disabilities, in
accordance with the most recent edition of the Guide, that is approved by the
Administrator.
(3) Except as
otherwise provided in subsection 3, passing an examination on evaluating
disabilities and impairments that is administered by the American Board of
Independent Medical Examiners or its successor organization, or by any other
organization or company recognized by the Division.
(4) Except as otherwise provided in
subsection 3, passing the Nevada Impairment Rating Skills Assessment Test which
is administered by the American Academy of Expert Medical Evaluators or its
successor organization and which examines the practical application of the
rating of disabilities in accordance with the Guide with a score of 75 percent
or higher.
(c)
Demonstrate an understanding of:
(1) The
regulations of the Division related to the evaluation of permanent partial
disabilities; and
(2) The
Guide.
3. The
Administrator may exempt an ophthalmologist or psychiatrist who is authorized
to practice in this State from the requirements set forth in subparagraphs (2),
(3) and (4) of paragraph (b) of subsection 2 and authorize an ophthalmologist
to evaluate injured employees with impaired vision or a psychiatrist to
evaluate injured employees with impaired brain function or mental or behavioral
disorders according to his or her area of specialization.
4. In order to maintain designation as a
rating physician or chiropractic physician, the physician or chiropractic
physician must:
(a) Except as otherwise
provided in subsection 5, perform ratings evaluations of permanent partial
disabilities when selected pursuant to NRS 616C.490, except disabilities
related to an employee's vision or brain function resulting from an industrial
accident or occupational disease.
(b) Schedule and perform a rating evaluation
within 30 days after receipt of a request from an insurer, a third-party
administrator or an injured employee or his or her representative.
(c) Except as otherwise provided in this
paragraph and subsection 5, serve without compensation for a period of 1 year
on the panel to review ratings evaluations established pursuant to NAC 616C.023
upon the request of the Administrator. With the approval of the Administrator,
a physician or chiropractic physician may serve without compensation on the
panel for an additional period of 1 year.
(d) Except as otherwise provided in
subsection 5 and after the date of designation as a rating physician or
chiropractic physician, successfully complete biennially a course that is
approved by the Administrator on rating disabilities, in accordance with the
American Medical Association's Guide.
(e) Except as otherwise provided in
subsection 5, if the physician or chiropractic physician passed an examination
concerning an edition of the Guide that is not the most recent edition adopted
by the Administrator to become designated as a rating physician, pass the
Nevada Impairment Rating Skills Assessment Test which is administered by the
American Academy of Expert Medical Evaluators or its successor organization and
which examines the practical application of the rating of disabilities in
accordance with the Guide with a score of 75 percent or higher.
5. If an ophthalmologist or
psychiatrist has been designated as a rating physician and wishes to maintain
such designation, the Administrator may exempt the ophthalmologist or
psychiatrist who is authorized to practice in this State from the requirements
set forth in paragraphs (a), (c), (d) and (e) of subsection 4 and authorize the
ophthalmologist to continue to evaluate injured employees with impaired vision
or the psychiatrist to continue to evaluate injured employees with impaired
brain function or mental or behavioral disorders according to his or her area
of specialization.
6. A rating
evaluation of a permanent partial disability may be performed by a chiropractic
physician only if the injured employee's injury and treatment are related to
his or her neuromusculoskeletal system.
7. A rating physician or chiropractic
physician may not rate the disability of an injured employee if the physician
or chiropractic physician has:
(a) Previously
examined or treated the injured employee for the injury related to his or her
claim for workers' compensation; or
(b) Reviewed the health care records of the
injured employee and has made recommendations regarding the likelihood of the
injured employee's ratable impairment.
8. A rating evaluation of a permanent partial
disability performed by a rating physician or chiropractic physician is subject
to review by the Administrator pursuant to the provisions of NAC
616C.023.
Added to NAC by Dep't of
Industrial Relations, eff. 8-30-91; A by Div. of Industrial Relations by
R009-97, 10-27-97; R090-99, 10-28-99; R105-00, 1-18-2001, eff. 3-1-2001;
R060-03, 9-8-2003, eff. 10-1-2003; R006-06, 6-1-2006; R108-09, 6-30-2010; A by
R134-20A,
eff. 9/20/2022; Added to NAC by Div. of Industrial Relations
by
R134-20RA,
eff. 12/19/2022
NRS 616A.400,
616C.490
