Federal Injury Centers' private DOL doctors are enrolled with the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP), independent of every federal agency, and treat federal and postal work injuries exclusively. You choose us — your agency doesn't assign us. We evaluate your injury, complete your CA-16, CA-17 and CA-20, write the reports your claim depends on, and bill OWCP directly — at nine DMV clinics.
A DOL doctor is a physician or provider enrolled with the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP) to treat federal employees injured on the job under the Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA). A private DOL doctor is one you choose yourself under FECA — independent of your agency, as opposed to an agency health unit or agency-designated "company doctor." Unlike a general clinic, a DOL doctor bills OWCP directly, completes the physician portions of OWCP forms CA-16, CA-17 and CA-20, and writes the narrative medical reports that establish causation, work restrictions and permanent impairment. Federal Injury Centers is an independent private practice providing OWCP-enrolled DOL doctors — an MD Medical Director, nurse practitioners, chiropractors and physical therapists — at nine clinics across Washington DC, Maryland and Northern Virginia.
Federal workers' compensation is administered by the Department of Labor's Division of Federal Employees' Compensation (DFEC) within OWCP — not by your agency, your health plan, or the state of Maryland or Virginia. To be paid for treating a federal work injury, a provider must be enrolled in OWCP's medical bill processing system, follow OWCP's authorization rules, and submit its specific forms and reports.
Any licensed physician can enroll. What separates an experienced DOL doctor from a doctor who merely accepts OWCP is the documentation. OWCP claims examiners accept or deny claims on the strength of a physician's written opinion: the diagnosis, the objective findings, a rationalized statement of how the work incident caused the condition, and the restrictions on your CA-17. A well-treated injury with a thin report can still be a denied claim.
Federal Injury Centers treats federal and postal claims exclusively. Our providers, schedulers and billing staff work OWCP cases every day, and every report is authored or countersigned by a physician under the direction of our Medical Director, Dr. Yasmin Ahmed, MD.
Many injured federal employees hesitate to see a "DOL doctor" because they assume it means a doctor who works for the Department of Labor or for their agency — the "company doctor" who might minimize the injury, rush a return to full duty, or report back to a supervisor. That concern is grounded in how the system is built: there are doctors in a FECA claim who do not work for you.
An agency health unit or agency-designated physician is retained by your employer. OWCP second-opinion and referee examiners are selected and paid by OWCP to evaluate the claim. A private DOL doctor is different: an independent physician, enrolled with OWCP so the claim can be billed, whom you choose under your FECA right to select your own treating physician — and whose professional duty runs to you as the patient.
Federal Injury Centers is a private DOL doctor practice. We are independently owned, not employed by, paid by or affiliated with any federal agency, the Postal Service or the Department of Labor, and we are not on anyone's panel. We report what the claim requires — diagnosis, objective findings, causation opinion, work restrictions — to OWCP and your agency, because that is how your treatment gets authorized and your restrictions get honored. We do not report to your supervisor beyond that, and reporting your injury is a protected right.
| Private DOL doctor (Federal Injury Centers) | Agency health unit / designated doctor | OWCP second-opinion / referee | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who selects the doctor | You | Your agency | OWCP |
| Who the doctor is retained by | You (billed to OWCP) | Your employer | OWCP |
| Role in the claim | Treating physician | Initial exam / first aid | One-time evaluation |
| Ongoing treatment & CA-17 updates | Yes | Limited | No |
| Reports to your supervisor | Only the CA-17 restrictions | Yes | Via OWCP |
Physician forms are completed at your visit — not mailed to you weeks later.
Issued by your agency for traumatic injuries. Your DOL doctor completes Part B, the attending physician's report, at your first visit.
Physician completes Part BSets your work restrictions — lifting, standing, driving, hours. OWCP and your agency use it to decide light duty, modified duty or time off work.
Physician completes · updated each visitThe physician's diagnosis, history, findings and causation opinion that supports your CA-1 or CA-2 claim.
Physician completesThe detailed report OWCP relies on most: objective findings, mechanism of injury, why the job caused the condition, and treatment plan.
Physician authorsAt maximum medical improvement, a rating under the AMA Guides supports a schedule award for permanent loss of use of a limb or organ.
Physician evaluatesYou file these (usually in ECOMP): CA-1 traumatic injury, CA-2 occupational disease, CA-7 wage-loss compensation. We show you which apply and when.
You file · we guideTraumatic injuries (CA-1) and occupational diseases that develop over time (CA-2), including aggravation of a pre-existing condition by federal duty.
Medical, chiropractic and physical therapy care under one treatment plan, supervised by an MD Medical Director.
Internal medicine physician and Medical Director of Federal Injury Centers, Dr. Ahmed oversees the medical evaluation, treatment and OWCP physician reporting that injured federal employees rely on across all nine DMV clinics.
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Co-founder of Federal Injury Centers, owner of a 17-clinic integrative medical network across Maryland and Virginia, and a nationally recognized consultant to the White House and federal law enforcement on the opioid crisis.
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Co-founder of Federal Injury Centers and author of The Six Pillars of Sports Recovery, Dr. Rick Rosa brings athlete-grade recovery science to injured federal and postal employees across the DMV.
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Certified family nurse practitioner who evaluates and treats work-related injuries for federal and postal employees under physician supervision and completes OWCP medical documentation.
About our practice →Tell your supervisor and file a CA-1 or CA-2 in ECOMP. For a traumatic injury, request a CA-16 from your agency.
Pick any of our 9 DMV clinics. Bring your CA-16 if you have it — if not, we'll help you request it.
Your DOL doctor examines you, starts treatment and completes the CA-16 Part B, CA-17 and CA-20 at the visit.
Ongoing care, updated CA-17s and narrative reports as needed. We bill OWCP; you pay nothing on an accepted claim.
Search results are full of clinics that "accept workers' comp." For a federal claim, ask these questions before you book:
Nine Federal Injury Centers clinics. One number for all of them: (240) 863-2822.
A DOL doctor is a physician or healthcare provider who is enrolled with the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP) to treat federal employees injured on the job under the Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA). DOL doctors bill OWCP directly, complete the required OWCP medical forms (CA-16, CA-17, CA-20) and write the narrative medical reports that support a federal workers' compensation claim. "DOL doctor," "OWCP doctor," "Department of Labor doctor" and "federal workers' comp doctor" all refer to the same thing.
Not in the way the phrase is often used. OWCP does not certify or approve individual doctors as specialists. What OWCP does is enroll providers in its medical bill processing system so they can be paid for treating federal employees. Any licensed physician can enroll, so the real question is not whether a doctor is "approved" but whether they are enrolled with OWCP, experienced with FECA documentation, and willing to complete your CA-17 and CA-20 forms and narrative reports promptly. Federal Injury Centers' providers are OWCP-enrolled and treat federal claims exclusively.
Under FECA you have the right to choose your own treating physician. Your agency may direct you to an agency health unit or a designated physician for initial first aid or examination, but you may then select any qualified physician of your choice for treatment. Choose carefully: once you have selected a treating physician, changing to a different physician later generally requires OWCP's prior approval, and a change made without approval can result in unpaid bills.
A private DOL doctor is an independent physician, enrolled with OWCP, whom you choose to treat your federal work injury under your FECA right to select your own physician. A "company doctor" — the agency health unit, an agency-designated physician, or a contract clinic your supervisor sends you to — is retained by your employer. Both may be OWCP-enrolled; the difference is who the doctor answers to. Federal Injury Centers is a private DOL doctor practice: independently owned, not employed by, paid by or affiliated with any federal agency, the Postal Service or the Department of Labor. We report your diagnosis, findings and restrictions to OWCP and your agency because the claim requires it, and nothing more.
No. Reporting a work injury and filing a FECA claim are protected rights, and a private DOL doctor has no role in agency discipline. What we do send is defined by the claim itself: the CA-16 Part B and CA-20 go to OWCP, and the CA-17 Duty Status Report goes to your agency so it can offer work within your restrictions. We do not communicate with your supervisor about your claim beyond that, and we do not work for your agency. If you have been steered to a particular clinic by a supervisor, you are still free to choose your own physician.
FECA defines "physician" to include doctors of medicine (MD), doctors of osteopathy (DO), podiatrists, dentists, clinical psychologists, optometrists and chiropractors — with chiropractors limited to treatment of spinal subluxation demonstrated by X-ray. Nurse practitioners and physician assistants are valuable members of a treatment team, but OWCP gives evidentiary weight to reports authored or countersigned by a physician. That is why Federal Injury Centers operates under an MD Medical Director, Dr. Yasmin Ahmed, and why physician-authored reports are standard on every claim.
On an accepted OWCP claim, no. There are no copays, deductibles or out-of-pocket costs for treatment of the accepted work-related condition. OWCP pays enrolled providers directly. Federal Injury Centers bills OWCP for you and never bills your personal health insurance for a work injury.
For a traumatic injury, your agency should issue a Form CA-16 within four hours of your request, which authorizes examination and treatment for up to 60 days while OWCP adjudicates the claim. Bring the CA-16 to your first visit. For occupational disease claims (CA-2), a CA-16 is generally not issued, and treatment options while the claim is pending vary; call us at (240) 863-2822 and our team will walk you through what applies to your situation before you are seen.
Your DOL doctor completes Part B of the CA-16 (Attending Physician's Report), the CA-17 Duty Status Report that sets your work restrictions, the CA-20 Attending Physician's Report, and the narrative medical reports OWCP requires to establish causation and support continued treatment. You are responsible for the employee forms: CA-1 (traumatic injury), CA-2 (occupational disease) and CA-7 (claim for compensation for wage loss), usually filed through ECOMP. We help you understand which employee forms you need and when.
Yes. USPS employees are covered by FECA and make up a large share of the injured federal workers we treat. Letter carriers, mail handlers, clerks and postal vehicle operators are seen at all nine Federal Injury Centers locations for back, shoulder, knee, wrist and repetitive-strain injuries.
Federal Injury Centers has DOL doctors at nine clinics: Alexandria VA, Baltimore MD, Fairfax (Merrifield) VA, Frederick MD, Greenbelt MD, Laurel MD, Rockville MD, Silver Spring MD and Temple Hills MD. One number — (240) 863-2822 — reaches every location.
One form reaches all 9 Federal Injury Centers locations. Our scheduling team will match you with the nearest clinic, confirm your OWCP paperwork and get you evaluated — usually within days.
Prefer to talk? Call (240) 863-2822
Don't have these yet? Submit the form anyway — we'll help you get the paperwork started.
