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www.dol.gov/esa
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| November 4, 2008 DOL Home > ESA > OWCP > DFEC > Information for Employers |  |
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Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP)
Division of Federal Employees' Compensation (DFEC) Information for Employers Where do I send CA forms? Employers should continue to send the previously designated CA forms to the district office that has jurisdiction over the case. Where do I send other mail? Except previously designated CA forms, send all mail and bills for Federal workers’ compensation cases to: U.S. Department of Labor Please be sure to include the claim number on every page you send. What do I tell an injured worker who says that OWCP won’t pay for a treatment/medication prescribed by her/his physician? We have recently enhanced our computer system to ensure that the care the injured worker is receiving is relevant to the condition(s) for which the case was accepted. These enhancements were made in accordance with the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act which mandates OWCP to furnish an injured worker with services, appliances, and supplies prescribed by a qualified physician which OWCP deems likely “to cure, give relief, reduce the degree or the period of disability, or aid in lessening the amount of monthly compensation.” While we have always had processes in place to help assure that OWCP authorizes and pays only for services, treatments, medications, and durable medical equipment related to the accepted conditions on a claim, our recent computer enhancements provide more rigor to these processes. As a result of this, some injured workers may find that treatment or medications previously allowed are no longer available to them. If an injured worker’s physician believes a treatment, procedure, or medication is necessary for the treatment of the injured worker’s accepted conditions, the provider needs to submit medical documentation for review by the claims examiner. As is the case with anything sent to OWCP, please be sure to include the injured worker’s claim/case number on every page. Please mail all documentation to U.S. Department of Labor, DFEC Central Mailroom, P.O. Box 8300, London, KY, 40742-8300. How can an Employing Agency access the ACS web portal? The easiest way is through “Bill Inquiry” link at the bottom of the OWCP Agency Query System (AQS) Case Query screen. If you don’t have AQS access, contact your agency headquarters. Employing Agencies can also go directly to the ACS web portal http://owcp.dol.acs-inc.com, but this option requires more data entry. How do I learn the status of a medical authorization request? Injured Workers, Providers, and Employing Agencies can check on the status of medical authorizations at http://owcp.dol.acs-inc.com. Having this information on the web is beneficial since authorization information is available 24 hours/day, 7 days/week without calling for an authorization number or waiting for the receipt of an authorization letter in the mail. Claimant eligibility, bill status, and medical authorization inquiry functionality is also available 24 hours a day via our Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system. To access the IVR, call 866-335-8319. To speak with a Customer Service Representative regarding an authorization, you may call 850-558-1818 which will be a toll call. This number is available Monday – Friday, 8am – 8pm, EST. How do I learn the status of a bill or claim for reimbursement? Injured Workers, Providers, and Employing Agencies can check on the status of bills and reimbursements at http://owcp.dol.acs-inc.com. Claimant eligibility, bill status, and medical authorization inquiry functionality is also available 24 hours a day via our Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system. To access the IVR, please dial 866-335-8319. To speak with a Customer Service Representative regarding a bill or reimbursement, you may call 850-558-1818 which will be a toll call. This number is available Monday – Friday, 8am – 8pm, EST. I think I might need some help in using the web portal. Do you have some instructions or a user manual? Yes. Go to http://owcp.dol.acs-inc.com and click on the Help link (it’s on the right side, above the yellow box). This will open a User Guide. How can Employing Agencies help Injured Workers?
How can Employing Agencies help Providers?
How can Employees and Providers learn the Accepted Conditions on a Claim? This information is now available online at http://owcp.dol.acs-inc.com – click on the "Eligibility and Accepted Conditions" link. Read the instructions on how to use this functionality. What are the benefits of centralizing medical authorizations and billing? The new system is designed to allow our contractor, ACS, to approve services and payments based on established treatment guidelines and OWCP staff decisions regarding covered conditions. In turn, this allows OWCP staff to dedicate more time to entitlement issues and return to work efforts. We have made eligibility, medical authorization, and billing information accessible 24 hours a day/7 days a week to Injured Workers, Employing Agencies, and Providers via the Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system and the web. Providers can now request, and for routine services receive, authorization on-line which is easier for providers and speeds up the authorization process. Why did you change to a toll number to talk with a Customer Service Representative? We offer an automated toll-free Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system at 866-335-8319 which provides access to information regarding eligibility, authorization, and bill payment status. This information is also available online at http://owcp.dol.acs-inc.com. A great deal of information is available through the automated toll-free IVR and web based processes which are available 24/7. All of these allow for a greater savings to DFEC so that future enhancements can be implemented.
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