About 80% of the population, if given an MRI today, would have positive degenerative findings. Therefore, when you approve an MRI you have an 80% chance of it coming back positive. When that happens, the claim is subject to some medical professional's opinion that the worker suffered an "aggravation to a pre-existing condition". In virtually all Workers' Compensation jurisdictions, this can be the kiss of death and obligate your company to long term benefits and medical expenses. Instead, make sure that there is both clinical and causal proof that an MRI is needed.

In a recent case our client was being pressured to approve an MRI. This was a MINOR auto accident with less than $700 to the trailer of the big rig. The reason the doctor gave for wanting the MRI was, that on X-ray, there was evidence of lessened disc heights at four different levels. (This is usually a sign of degenerative disc disease, not trauma) We told the doctor if he would write a letter explaining how this accident could have caused the lessened disc heights that we would take his letter to our medical director for his review. The doctor decided that the MRI was not imperative, and felt he could discharge the patient.