Dr. Owen is the New DWC Medical Advisor

Congratulations to TPS Emeritus Board Member and Past President Dr. Owen
for his new role as DWC Medical Advisor


The Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) is pleased to announce that Dr. Graves T. Owen, M.D. will serve as DWC Medical Advisor and Jennifer Hopens will serve as Deputy Commissioner of the Appeals Panel.

Dr. Owen is a board-certified anesthesiologist with fellowship training in interdisciplinary pain management. After completing his fellowship training in pain management, Dr. Owen went on to practice interdisciplinary pain management in Round Rock for 24 years. In addition to his practice, Dr. Owen published numerous articles and frequently lectured on pain management topics. He also served as president of the Texas Pain Society and board chairman for the Texas Pain Foundation.  Dr. Owen has served on DWC’s Medical Quality Review Panel since 2010.

Ms. Hopens received her bachelor’s and law degrees from the University of Texas at Austin. She joined DWC as a hearing officer in 2007 and traveled across the state presiding over contested case hearings. From 2016 to 2017, she served as the Director of Hearings for the Northern & Western regions of DWC. In 2017, she was named Director of the Appeals Panel. Ms. Hopens served as president of the National Association of Workers’ Compensation Judiciary from 2016 to 2018. She is Board Certified in Workers’ Compensation law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.

Please contact Jeff Nelson at [email protected] or 512-804-4405 with any questions.

Share this post: