[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 20, Volume 1]
[Revised as of April 1, 2007]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 20CFR10.501]

[Page 41]
 
                      TITLE 20--EMPLOYEES' BENEFITS
 
CHAPTER I--OFFICE OF WORKERS' COMPENSATION PROGRAMS, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
 
PART 10_CLAIMS FOR COMPENSATION UNDER THE FEDERAL EMPLOYEES' COMPENSATION ACT, 
 
                      Subpart F_Continuing Benefits
 
Sec.  10.501  What medical evidence is necessary to support continuing receipt 

of compensation benefits?

    (a) The employee is responsible for providing sufficient medical 
evidence to justify payment of any compensation sought.
    (1) To support payment of continuing compensation, narrative medical 
evidence must be submitted whenever OWCP requests it but ordinarily not 
less than once a year. It must contain a physician's rationalized 
opinion as to whether the specific period of alleged disability is 
causally related to the employee's accepted injury or illness.
    (2) The physician's opinion must be based on the facts of the case 
and the complete medical background of the employee, must be one of 
reasonable medical certainty and must include objective findings in 
support of its conclusions. Subjective complaints of pain are not 
sufficient, in and of themselves, to support payment of continuing 
compensation. Likewise, medical limitations based solely on the fear of 
a possible future injury are also not sufficient to support payment of 
continuing compensation. See Sec.  10.330 for a fuller discussion of 
medical evidence.
    (b) OWCP may require any kind of non-invasive testing to determine 
the employee's functional capacity. Failure to undergo such testing will 
result in a suspension of benefits. In addition, OWCP may direct the 
employee to undergo a second opinion or referee examination in any case 
it deems appropriate (see Sec. Sec.  10.320 and 10.321).