The Department of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) recently updated the regulations regarding their mandatory report-writing course for Qualified Medical Evaluators (QMEs). Effective February 26, 2024, the report-writing course has now been extended to 16 hours from 12 hours previously. QMEs who obtained their certificate of completion before April 1, 2024 are still covered under the previous 12-hour requirement. Those who took the Spring QME Exam and have yet to complete the course are now mandated to fulfill the 16-hour curriculum requirement (1).
Additions to the Curriculum
To fulfill the mandated 16-hours, the updated course now integrates two hours of anti-bias training and two hours dedicated to a comprehensive review of Workers’ Compensation case law. The increase in the continuing education hours requirement is expected to lead to a commensurate increase in the quality of medical-legal reporting. Six of the sixteen hours of instruction must be live, either virtually or in-person, and not recorded.
Additionally, QMEs seeking reappointment must complete 16 hours of continuing education (updated from the previous 12) in disability evaluation or Worker’s Compensation-related medical dispute evaluation. This new regulation will apply to applications for reappointment received on or after April 1, 2026 (1).
The full text of these new regulations can be found here.
Impact on the QMEs
The DWC’s mandate of a 16-hour report-writing course for QMEs shows the desire for higher quality and expertise within the field. Integrating anti-bias training and case law review, alongside in-person instruction, underscores a commitment to fair and informed evaluations; this would be expected to favor the injured worker. A shift towards more rigorous continuing education requirements reflects a proactive approach to maintaining high standards in medical-legal reporting, benefiting both workers and employers in the Workers’ Compensation system. Previous investigation indicates overall poor quality of QME reports, and there is a movement to improve the quality (2).
References:
- Qualified Medical Evaluator (QME) Process Regulations. State of California Department of Industrial Relations, Feb. 2024 https://www.dir.ca.gov/dwc/DWCPropRegs/2023/QME/Index.htm
- Jones, Stacy L. “An Early Look at the Impact of the New Med-Legal Fee Schedule.” California Workers’ Compensation Institute, July 2022. https://cwci.org/.
