Labor Code 4616

Senate Bill 863 made changes to rules surrounding Medical Provider Networks (MPN). I just want to point out a few changes that will affect most providers. The Labor Code is changed to say that starting on January 1, 2014 a treating physician shall be included in the network only if, at the time of entering into or renewing an agreement by which the physician would be in the network, the physician’s office provides a separate written acknowledgment in which the physician affirmatively elects to be a member of the network. Therefore, it is extremely important for physicians to be on the lookout for letters from MPN’s soliciting this acknowledgment. Read them and sign them and send them in.