“I Am Scheduled For An Independent Medical Examination On My Arizona Workers’ Comp Case, Can I Record The Doctor?”

The answer to this question is “yes”. Based on a case from 1990 called Burton v. Industrial Commission, Arizona injured workers can tape record Independent Medical Examiners.

Arizona injured workers are required from time to time to be examined by Independent Medical Examiners, which are typically doctors hand-chosen by insurance carriers to assess the injured worker’s diagnosis and recommendation for treatment. These examinations are mandatory and an injured worker’s benefits can be suspended if they miss the examination.

In the Burton case, the court said that an Arizona injured worker can have a tape recorder there recording audio only, and not video. We typically instruct our clients to make sure the doctor knows that the examination is being recorded. You can use an actual recording device or even your cell phone.

It’s important in our opinion to record most Independent Medical Examinations because the reality is most of the doctors, not all of them, but many of them are adverse to the client’s interests even though the examination is tabbed as “independent.”