I was recently drawn into a pretty touchy forum debate (a great use of my time, I know…) with some other claimants’ reps who took a contrary view on my pet topic, the importance of updating all medical records before each hearing. These attorneys were deflecting blame for failing to submit a complete record on doctors and their staff, some of whom are less than forthcoming with the records we request. While I’ve experienced this problem at times as well, I’m adamant that that doesn’t absolve a representative from their duty to update the medical record in time for the hearing. Aside from ordering and following up on records early and often, I contend that a representative should exhaust all their options in pursuing any medical records that are proving difficult to obtain. I therefore shared my strategies for obtaining records from obstinate providers- a sequence of approaches to bringing the doctor’s staff around to your side and expediting the records request.
1) politeness
2) begging (“my boss is going to give me a really hard time if i don’t get these records in time…”)
3) guilt-tripping (“this patient has waited so long for their hearing and is going through rough times. If we dont get these records in time it will jeopardize their case.”)
4) browbeating (“let me talk to your supervisor”)
5) legal threats (HIPAA complaints)
6) notifying the client of the doctor’s obstructiveness and enlisting their help
7) notifying the judge and requesting subpoena
I’ve only ever once needed to resort all the way to the last step, and even then the records came in just in time.