Reid Murtaugh, Workers Comp Attorney; Lafayette, IN Withered Burns, LLP

Agency Divisions
The Ombudsman Division has been established to assist employers and employees who have problems or disputes in workers compensation matters. Upon receipt of a signed Request for Assistance Form the Ombudsman division may attempt to informally resolve disputes arising between employers and employees. If the Ombudsman division is unable to resolve a dispute, the parties may file for a hearing before a worker's compensation judge. If you require the assistance of an Ombudsman, you may call (800) 824-2667, or fill out a written Request for Assistance. Upon receipt of the form, an Ombudsman will contact the parties involved in order to attempt to resolve the dispute. The Ombudsman Division currently has three Case Coordinators. The three Case Coordinators guide pro-se plaintiffs, conduct limited pretrial conferences, facilitate resolution of files three years and older, and mediate cases in which settlement is possible. The Case Coordinators work in the field to assist the six Single Hearing Members of the Board. In addition, one IME specialist schedules and coordinates independent medical appointments for injured workers throughout the state. The Approval Services Division is responsible for processing and checking the accuracy of reports of injury and compensation agreements. If you have a question about the calculation of disability or permanent partial impairment (PPI) benefits, contact this division. Approval Services reviews agreements for TTD, when the injured worker is totally disabled from work, TPD, when the injured person is temporarily able to do partial work at less pay, PTD, permanent total disability, PPI, when the injured person will not achieve 100% recovery, and fatality reports. Processing PPI agreements is very fact specific as it involves reading and understanding medical reports and making calculations according to the Act. The Intake Division processes Requests for Assistance, Reports of Claim Status when an injured worker requests an IME, Applications for Adjustment of Claim to initiate the formal hearing process, Provider Fee Applications, and Full Board Review Applications. The division also processes and administers Independent Contractor Clearance Certificates, in conjunction with the Indiana Department of Revenue (see page 13). The Administrative Division processes and schedules applications for hearings, motions, settlement agreements and other filings. It administers the Second Injury Fund and the Self Insurance program. The administrative division can answer questions about single hearing member and Full Board hearings, continuances, and disputed cases (claims in which an Application for Adjustment of Claim has been filed).

Note: The material is copied from the Indiana Guide to Workers Compensation produced by the Governors office, which can be found free at http://www.in.gov/wcb/handbook/HANDBK2007.htm.