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LITIGATION PROBLEMS WITH THE GAF

The doctor needs to be fully prepared to defend their conclusions that there is “ some difficulty ”“ moderate difficulty ,” “ serious impairment ” and “ major impairment ” with objective data from the examination that supports a believable conclusion. Statements about an applicant’s level of permanent psychiatric disability rest upon the doctor’s conclusions about their Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF). According to the Schedule for Rating Permanent Disabilities each GAF score bears a corresponding Whole Person Impairment (WPI) score. GAF scores of 70 or above have a WPI score of 0. GAF scores of 40 or less have WPI scores greater than 50. GAF scores that are above 70 or below 40 are not typically problematic in workers’ compensation cases unless the doctor has made a gross error. The GAF scale is defined on page 34 of the DSM-IV-TR. Here are the DSM-IV-TR definitions for the most relevant scores for worker’s compensation purposes. 70-“Some mild symptoms (e.g., depressed mood