Practicefirst reminds you, that as of January 1st, 2020, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, as well as licensed clinical social workers and physical therapists can be authorized to treat injured workers in NYS. Only those providers who are Board Authorized may treat worker’s compensation patients. PA’s and NP’s will now obtain their own board authorization. This means that when you treat an injured worker, you will submit your own medical reports and bills without the signature of a supervising physician.
Unless otherwise permitted by law, a provider permitted to seek authorization must obtain such authorization prior to treating injured workers under the worker’s compensation law. (Title 12 NYCRR, section 323.1). The law provides an exception, whereby Hospitalists, rendering inpatient services, and ED/Urgent Care providers are not required to become Board Authorized.
Authorization Process
To apply for authorization, providers must:
1. Sign up to use the NYS Worker’s Compensation Board Medical Portal - Sign up for the Medical Portal! When you register for access, you will be asked for your email address. This should be your individual email address, not a group or practice email.
2. Complete the mandatory training courses – once you have received your Medical Portal login, you can access the training by selecting Medical Portal from the “log in to access” box at the top right of the homepage.
3. Complete the New Provider Authorization Request online application form, which can be found on the Board’s Medical Portal, and submit it to the board.
4. Complete and attach the Supervising Physician Affirmation Letter, which must be completed by your supervising physician and attached to your application. The application must be done in one sitting. You cannot save and come back later.
