Iowa law allows the employer to choose the doctor for your care, if you are injured on the job. However, the State workers' compensation agency retains the right to order a change, if you have a legitimate reason to be dissatisfied with the doctor's care. They will not order a new doctor if you don't approve of the company choosing your doctor. However, there are some reasons that they will consider:

• You have to travel more than an hour to see their chosen doctor, and there is a doctor of the same specialty that you could see closer to home.
  
• Your company doctor did surgery once, and you were not happy with the outcome. Now, that doctor wants to operate again.
• The company doctor was rude to you, to the point that you can no longer consider him or her your doctor.
  
• You have been going to a Nurse Practitioner or primary care physician for a serious condition, and nothing has improved in several months.
  

 Iowa law provides that, if you want to change doctors, the Iowa state agency has to respond very quickly to your request, holding a hearing and issuing an order in very rapid succession.

 

The same procedure can be used if the company doctor recommends a test or procedure, and the employer or insurance carrier tries to block it. That is covered in a separate FAQ.