1| HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES - FLOOR VERSION | | | 2| STATE OF OKLAHOMA | | | 3| 2nd Session of the 59th Legislature (2024) | | | 4|COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE | |FOR ENGROSSED | 5|SENATE BILL NO. 1457 By: Treat, Rosino, Weaver, and | | Hall of the Senate | 6| | | and | 7| | | Kannady and Harris of the | 8| House | | | 9| | | | 10| | | | 11| | | | 12| COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE | | | 13| An Act relating to workers' compensation; amending | | 85A O.S. 2021, Section 13, which relates to mental | 14| health-related injuries; exempting first responders | | from physical injury requirement for certain claim; | 15| providing for computation of benefits for certain | | persons; providing for temporary pension benefits; | 16| imposing limits on total period of disability | | benefits; providing for award of permanent total | 17| disability based upon maximum medical improvement; | | providing for payment of benefits based on certain | 18| injury; imposing time limit on benefits; imposing | | limit on employer responsibility for certain medical | 19| benefits; requiring employer to maintain health | | insurance coverage under certain circumstance; | 20| providing that payment of certain claims be made | | through certain pool; defining terms; updating | 21| statutory references; and providing an effective | | date. | 22| | | | 23| | | | 24|BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA: | | | arsid6502935 SB1457 HFLR Page 1 ___________________________________________________________________________
1| SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 85A O.S. 2021, Section 13, is | | | 2|amended to read as follows: | | | 3| Section 13. A. 1. A mental injury or illness is not a | | | 4|compensable injury unless caused by a physical injury to the | | | 5|employee, and shall not be considered an injury arising out of and | | | 6|in the course and scope of employment or compensable unless | | | 7|demonstrated by a preponderance of the evidence; provided, however, | | | 8|that this physical injury limitation shall not apply to any victim | | | 9|of a crime of violence, a law enforcement officer, paid or volunteer | | | 10|firefighter, or emergency medical technician employed on a full-time | | | 11|basis by a municipality, county, or this state, or a voluntary | | | 12|firefighter who suffers post-traumatic stress disorder, as defined | | | 13|in subsection E of this section, while responding to an emergency. | | | 14|For the purposes of this section, such employee shall be referred to | | | 15|as a first responder. | | | 16| 2. No mental injury or illness under this section shall be | | | 17|compensable unless it is also diagnosed by a licensed psychiatrist | | | 18|or psychologist and unless the diagnosis of the condition meets the | | | 19|criteria established in the most current issue of the Diagnostic and | | | 20|Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. | | | 21| B. 1. Notwithstanding any other provision ofthis actthe | | | 22|Administrative Workers' Compensation Act, where a claim is for | | | 23|mental injury or illness, the employee shall be limited to | | | 24|twenty-six (26) weeks of disability benefits unless it is shown by | | | arsid6502935 SB1457 HFLR Page 2 ___________________________________________________________________________
1|clear and convincing evidence that benefits should continue for a | | | 2|set period of time, not to exceed a total of fifty-two (52) weeks. | | | 3|If the treating physician is of the opinion that the first responder | | | 4|is temporarily unable to perform his or her job or any alternative | | | 5|work offered by the employer, he or she shall be entitled to receive | | | 6|compensation which is the greater of the weekly benefit provided for | | | 7|in a collective bargaining agreement or according to the policy of | | | 8|the employer, or seventy percent (70%) of the injured employee's | | | 9|average weekly wage not to exceed the state average weekly wage. If | | | 10|the employee has a temporary pension benefit available at no | | | 11|additional cost to the employee and the benefit is equal to or | | | 12|greater than the temporary award in this system, the employer may | | | 13|elect to exercise the temporary pension benefit. In no event shall | | | 14|disability benefits extend beyond fifty-two (52) weeks. | | | 15| 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, a first | | | 16|responder who receives benefits provided herein for a mental injury | | | 17|or illness not accompanied by a physical injury who, after reaching | | | 18|maximum medical improvement, is unable to perform the essential | | | 19|functions of his or her employment position and who is not eligible | | | 20|to receive a disability retirement through his or her pension or | | | 21|retirement system shall be eligible to be awarded permanent | | | 22|disability benefits not to exceed Fifty Thousand Dollars | | | 23|($50,000.00) as provided for in this act. | | | 24| | | | arsid6502935 SB1457 HFLR Page 3 ___________________________________________________________________________
1| 3. a. In cases where death results directly from the mental | | | 2| injury or illness within a period of one (1) year, | | | 3| compensation shall be paid to the dependents as | | | 4| provided in other death cases underthis actthe | | | 5| Administrative Workers' Compensation Act. | | | 6| b. Death directly or indirectly related to the mental | | | 7| injury or illness occurring one (1) year or more from | | | 8| the incident resulting in the mental injury or illness | | | 9| shall not be a compensable injury. | | | 10| C. 1. In the event that the Oklahoma Workers' Compensation | | | 11|Commission finds that a first responder has suffered post-traumatic | | | 12|stress disorder not accompanied by a physical injury, the employer | | | 13|shall provide reasonable and necessary medical treatment for such | | | 14|injury, subject to the Oklahoma Workers' Compensation Commission's | | | 15|Fee Schedule, for a period not longer than one (1) year. The | | | 16|employer shall not be responsible for medical treatment in the form | | | 17|of prescription medicine in excess of Ten Thousand Dollars | | | 18|($10,000.00). | | | 19| 2. During any period in which a first responder is temporarily | | | 20|unable to perform his or her job, the employer shall pay to maintain | | | 21|health insurance coverage for the first responder, if such health | | | 22|insurance was in effect on the date of the injury. | | | 23| | | | 24| | | | arsid6502935 SB1457 HFLR Page 4 ___________________________________________________________________________
1| D. For the purposes of this section, claim payments for | | | 2|volunteer firefighters shall be paid pursuant to the Volunteer | | | 3|Firefighter Group Insurance Pool. | | | 4| E. For the purposes of this section: | | | 5| 1. "Post-traumatic stress disorder" means an injury or | | | 6|condition in which a first responder has been exposed to a traumatic | | | 7|event and: | | | 8| a. has experienced, witnessed, or was confronted with an | | | 9| event that involved actual or threatened death or | | | 10| serious injury, or a threat to the physical integrity | | | 11| of others, and the response involved fear, | | | 12| helplessness, or horror, | | | 13| b. the traumatic event is persistently re-experienced in | | | 14| one or more of the following ways: | | | 15| (1) recurrent and intrusive distressing | | | 16| recollections of the event, | | | 17| (2) recurrent distressing dreams, | | | 18| (3) acting or feeling as if the traumatic event were | | | 19| recurring, | | | 20| (4) intense psychological distress at exposure to | | | 21| cues that symbolize an aspect of the traumatic | | | 22| event, or | | | 23| (5) physiological reactivity on exposure to cues | | | 24| that symbolize an aspect of the traumatic event, | | | arsid6502935 SB1457 HFLR Page 5 ___________________________________________________________________________
1| c. persistent avoidance of stimuli associated with the | | | 2| trauma and numbing of general responsiveness such as | | | 3| efforts to avoid thoughts, feelings, or conversations | | | 4| associated with the trauma, markedly diminished | | | 5| interest or participation in significant activities, | | | 6| or a feeling of detachment or estrangement from | | | 7| others, | | | 8| d. persistent symptoms of increased arousal such as | | | 9| difficulty falling or staying asleep, irritability or | | | 10| outbursts of anger, difficulty concentrating, or | | | 11| hypervigilance, | | | 12| e. the duration of the disturbance is more than one (1) | | | 13| month, and | | | 14| f. the disturbance causes clinically significant | | | 15| distress or impairment in social, occupational, or | | | 16| other important areas of functioning; | | | 17| 2. "Volunteer firefighter" means a person who is enrolled as a | | | 18|member of a volunteer fire department with two or less salaried | | | 19|firefighters and who serves in such capacity without receiving a | | | 20|regular salary; and | | | 21| 3. "Emergency medical technician" means a person who holds a | | | 22|license as an emergency medical technician, an intermediate or | | | 23|advanced emergency medical technician, or a paramedic, issued by the | | | 24|State Department of Health to perform emergency medical services in | | | arsid6502935 SB1457 HFLR Page 6 ___________________________________________________________________________
1|accordance with the Oklahoma Emergency Response Systems Development | | | 2|Act and the rules and standards promulgated by the State | | | 3|Commissioner of Health. | | | 4| SECTION 2. This act shall become effective January 1, 2025. | | | 5| | | | 6|COMMITTEE REPORT BY: COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY - CIVIL, dated | |04/04/2024 - DO PASS, As Amended and Coauthored. | 7| | | | 8| | | | 9| | | | 10| | | | 11| | | | 12| | | | 13| | | | 14| | | | 15| | | | 16| | | | 17| | | | 18| | | | 19| | | | 20| | | | 21| | | | 22| | | | 23| | | | 24| | | | arsid6502935 SB1457 HFLR Page 7