Legal Question in Workers Comp in California

Re: Do I have to allow a Medical Records release

Workers compensation insurance companies that pay the bills for medical treatment are entitled to know what they are paying for. However, they cannot force you to sign a medical release. You can choose to sign one and limit it's use. If you do not sign a medical release, the workers compensation insurance company may subpoenae your records. You then can object and by filing a motion with the workers compensation board asking for limitations on the use of the subpoenaed records. It may be less trouble to sign the release and limit the use of the records on the face of the release by writing on the face of the release whatever limitations you want. Anything that is filed with the workers compensation appeals board such as medical reports describing the extent of your disability may become public records as part of the judicial proceeding and thus your employer may learn what is in the medical records or reports. You can limit what is filed to information that is only relevant to your injury and the disability it causes, and exclude from the public record other information in your medical records, but you need to be vigilant to be sure that happens.