You’re in the middle of a complex work injury claim. You, whether you’re a doctor, patient, or adjuster, are under a lot of time pressure. You want to get back to work, or to close the claim, or see your patient healed. This is where the PR-2 Report comes into play.
What is it? Before the patient has reached permanent and stationary status, it’s a report which summarizes the active management of the claim. It helps the provider communicate to the insurance company how the patient is responding to their treatment. After the claim has closed, PR-2 reports are used to describe future care necessary for the continual functional rehabilitation of the injured worker.
We’ve got six simple tips to help you understand the PR-2 Report better, and avoid common mistakes which can cause major delays.
- Don’t try to do too much in one single PR-2 Report. Time is short in any doctor’s visit.
- Select a focus for the visit and stick with it. Listen to how the patient is doing and select a plan of care which addresses the most debilitating parts of their injury first.
- Remember to keep all injured body parts on the radar. Injured body parts can get left off of the claim because the pain has seemingly fizzled out, only to flare back up again. If dealing with a multiple body part case it’s vital (literally!) to continue providing care for each aspect of the injury.
- Clear next steps. Future care should be a major priority of the PR-2 Report. For example, if you exam only the neck of an injured worker in one visit, be sure to plan to assess the functionality of the fingers in the next.
- Review the charts of fellow providers on the case.
- Remember to see the patient every 45 days (6 weeks) until the patient reaches MMI. Longer time between visits creates a lapse in care which can lead to delayed recovery and return to work.
If you’re confused about new RBRVS questions and how they change billing for the PR-2 report, check out question two in this helpful post from our friends at DaisyBill.
Listen in on the conversation at our new Podcast, CA WorkComp Report, here.