Background

This transmittal amends section I-2-1-30 of the Hearings, Appeals and Litigation Law (HALLEX) manual to update instructions regarding professional qualifications of medical sources at the administrative law judge (ALJ) hearing level.

Explanation of Content and Changes

Section I-2-1-30 is amended as follows:

I-2-1-30 – We changed the title to “Professional Qualifications of Medical Sources” to more accurately reflect the terminology used in the regulations.

I-2-1-30 A – We changed the heading to “General,” made significant editorial and formatting changes, and removed information that was duplicative of information in HALLEX I-2-6-70.

I-2-1-30 B – We changed the heading to “Professional Qualifications for MEs” and updated the information consistent with current hearing office practices.

I-2-1-30 C – We changed the heading to “Professional Qualifications for Non-ME Medical Sources” and updated the information. We instruct hearing office staff to add the professional qualifications to the E section of the claim(s) file upon receipt, and we include instructions for what to do if a medical source does not respond to reasonable attempts by hearing office staff to obtain this information.

Date: April 17, 2015