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You suffer a work-related injury. You report the accident. You ask the boss for medical treatment. That’s what you are supposed to do. Now, you expect medical care. It should be “honest” medical care that puts a priority on you — the patient.
Where does your medical care start? Some factories have first aid stations in their facility. Many other businesses use a local “occupational” clinic as a starting point for injured workers. Can you expect “real and honest” medical care at the company clinic? Can you trust the company doctor? Some company nurses and physicians really try to help the injured. But, a few neglect their medical calling. These bad ones work against the injured. They are biased for the company paying them.
A recent investigative article about Tesla’s outside medical clinic paints a dark picture of occupational care gone wrong. It starts with a clinic near Tesla’s car factory. The clinic, Access Omnicare run by Dr. Basil Besh, wanted Tesla’s business. They wanted the business pretty badly. The doctor met with Tesla officials. What did the doctor promise Tesla? We may never know the exact words spoken in that meeting. But, when she learned he had secured Tesla’s business, the doctor’s wife excitedly texted — “Time to deliver.” Deliver they did!
From reading the article, it appears the office manager had a real heart, felt guilty for the injured workers coming through the clinic, and blew the whistle. According to the office manager, Dr. Besh did whatever he could to insure he continued serving as Tesla’s local factory clinic. That meant helping Tesla and hurting the workers. When it came to workers with potential work comp claims, Dr. Besh would say,
I’m not losing the contract over this — get this case closed.
Interviews with former clinic workers revealed how Tesla and the doctor coordinated behind the scenes to help the company at the expense of injured workers. The article detailed several specific cases where the clinic harmed injured workers by misrepresenting their condition or care. It’s a horrible story of fraud. If you want to learn how a biased and corrupted clinic can harm injured workers, you should read the full article. It is titled, How Tesla And Its Doctor Made Sure Injured Employees Didn’t Get Workers’ Comp.
In prior posts, I’ve discussed work comp fraud. While many people think of fraud in terms of a single worker falsely claiming injury or disability, such claims are small in number. When a worker suffers a significant injury, he or she is run through tests and doctors. False injury claims don’t make it far. In reality, injured workers frequently receive far less than truly owed. People may disagree on the extent of a disability, but worker fraud is small. The real fraud in our comp system relates to either (1) employee misclassification or (2) biased / bad medical care. In both situations, businesses are trying to cheat the system and workers usually pay the price. In my opinion, the denial of real and needed medical care is (by far) the biggest fraud in the system. It costs workers, their families and entire communities. The Tesla article exposes the underbelly of a system that leaves workers hurting.
How do bad clinics harm injured workers? Company-oriented clinics have several tools at their disposal. They include the four methods of harming workers I’ve detailed below. I’ve seen each of them many times in my law practice. I’ve explained each by using examples:
I could provide you many examples of bad employers and biased company clinics ignoring real worker injuries. Maybe you are thinking it does not happen here. Yet, it does. Years ago, Birmingham even had an occupational doctor who would routinely provide “opinions” far outside his specialty for patients he had never even seen. That is but one example of several biased occupational clinics in Alabama. The cost of biased occupational care is tremendous. It’s a terrible cost for the workers and everyone around them.
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At the Blackwell Law Firm, we represent injured workers across northern Alabama. We hope our articles provide needed information to answer your questions. We are also available to discuss your issues. Consultations are always free and confidential.