Question
Can Hartford tell my doctor I shouldn't be present when he fills out their paperwork?
Hi. I’m attempting to get short term due to migraines and weight loss due to vomiting/pain with migraines. The doctor did not document well but did at one of my appointments very thoroughly. They sent 3 full short answer type questions to my doctor and told him via phone I was not to be present while he filled out the paperwork. Can they request that? This is a lot of work for him to not be compensated? I went out on intermittent FMLa in November but he didn’t document my migraines until March, which is when I went out on full time FMLA. So why can’t Hartford go off the March 1 date when he did start documenting? My doc has been great up until this last 3 page set of questions. I think I want to fight them.
Answer
Molly, if your policy requires you to be out of work for 7 consecutive days to satisfy an elimination period (or whatever time frame they use), then the date of disability may not go back to November and even if you met that timeframe- when you return to work it would effectively close the STD claim. The carrier can request additional information by way of questions from your doctor. Whether they ever know if you are present when they are completed is another thing. The fact they are sending additional questions to the doctor leads me to believe they are not inclined to find you disabled based on the information already in their possession. Please feel free to contact our office to discuss your claim further.
