SB 321 — AN ACT EXPANDING WORKERS' COMPENSATION COVERAGE FOR POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS INJURIES FOR ALL EMPLOYEES.

Senate General Assembly FileSubstitute Bill No.

250321 February Session, 2022 SubstituteAN SenateACT BillEXPANDING No.WORKERS' COMPENSATION COVERAGE FOR POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS INJURIES FOR ALL EMPLOYEES.

321 Senate, March 31, 2022 The Committee on Labor and Public Employees reported through SEN.

KUSHNER of the 24th Dist., Chairperson of the Committee on the part of the Senate, that the substitute bill ought to pass.

AN ACT EXPANDING WORKERS' COMPENSATION COVERAGE FOR POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS INJURIES FOR ALL EMPLOYEES.

sSB321(3) /"Emergency Filemedical No.services personnel" has the same meaning as provided in section 20-206jj;

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250 (3) "Emergency medical services personnel" has the same meaning as provided in section 20-206jj;

(5)LCO "Health\\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2022SB-00321-R01 care provider" means (A) a person employed at a doctor's office, hospital, health care center, clinic, medical school, local health department or agency, nursing facility, retirement facility, nursing home, group home, home health care provider, any facility that performs laboratory or medical testing, pharmacy or any similar institution, or (B) a person employed to provide personal care assistance, as defined in section 17b-706, in or about a private dwelling, provided such person is regularly employed by the owner or occupier of the8 dwellingSB.docx forSubstitute moreBill thanNo. twenty-six hours per week;

321 (5) "Health care provider" means (A) a person employed at a doctor's office, hospital, health care center, clinic, medical school, local health department or agency, nursing facility, retirement facility, nursing home, group home, home health care provider, any facility that performs laboratory or medical testing, pharmacy or any similar institution, or (B) a person employed to provide personal care assistance, as defined in section 17b-706, in or about a private dwelling, provided such person is regularly employed by the owner or occupier of the dwelling for more than twenty-six hours per week;

(10) "Post-traumatic stress injury" means an injury that meets the diagnostic criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder as specified in the most recent edition of the American Psychiatric Association's sSB321"Diagnostic /and FileStatistical No.Manual of Mental Disorders";

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250 "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders";

(A)LCO An{\\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2022SB-00322 event occurring in the line of duty8 onR02-SB.docx or} afterSubstitute JulyBill 1,No. 2019, in which a police officer, parole officer, firefighter, emergency medical services personnel, Department of Correction employee or telecommunicator:

321 (A) An event occurring in the line of duty on or after July 1, 2019, in which a police officer, parole officer, firefighter, emergency medical services personnel, Department of Correction employee or telecommunicator:

sSB321(ii) /Witnesses Filean injury to a person who subsequently dies as a result LCO {\\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2022SB-00321- 3 of 8 R02-SB.docx } Substitute Bill No.

250321 3of sSB321COVID-19 Fileor No.due to symptoms that were later diagnosed as COVID- 19;

250 (ii) Witnesses an injury to a person who subsequently dies as a result of COVID-19 or due to symptoms that were later diagnosed as COVID- 19;

and sSB321LCO /{\\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2022SB-00321-4 Fileof 8 R02-SB.docx } Substitute Bill No.

250321 4(13) sSB321"Witnesses" Filemeans, No.for an eligible individual who is a telecommunicator, hears by telephone or radio while directly responding to an emergency call that constitutes a qualifying event under this section and providing a dispatch assignment.

250 (13) "Witnesses" means, for an eligible individual who is a telecommunicator, hears by telephone or radio while directly responding to an emergency call that constitutes a qualifying event under this section and providing a dispatch assignment.

The employer shall sendLCO a{\\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2022SB-00325 copy of the8 noticeR02-SB.docx to} theSubstitute employeeBill in accordance with section 31- sSB321 / File No.

250321 5send sSB321a Filecopy No.of the notice to the employee in accordance with section 31- 321.

250 321.

If an employer has opted to post an address of where notice of a claim for compensationLCO by{\\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2022SB-00326 anof employee8 shallR02-SB.docx be} sent,Substitute asBill described in subsection sSB321 / File No.

250321 6compensation sSB321by Filean No.employee shall be sent, as described in subsection (a) of section 31-294c, the twenty-eight-day period set forth in this subsection shall begin on the date when such employer receives written notice of a claim for compensation at such posted address.

250 (a) of section 31-294c, the twenty-eight-day period set forth in this subsection shall begin on the date when such employer receives written notice of a claim for compensation at such posted address.

Section 1 January 1, 2023 31-294k StatementLAB ofJoint LegislativeFavorable Commissioners:Subst.

InAPP SectionJoint 1(a)(11)(A)(vi)Favorable "or"LCO was{\\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2022SB-00321- bracketed7 forof clarity8 andR02-SB.docx in} SectionSubstitute 1(a)(11)(C)(iv)Bill "atNo. a hospital" was added for clarity and consistency with other provisions of the section.

LAB321 JointLCO Favorable{\\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2022SB-00321- Subst.8 of 8 R02-SB.docx }

sSB321 / File No.

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250 The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose.

In general, fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional knowledge.

Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.

OFA Fiscal Note State Impact:

Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 23 $ FY 24 $ Various State Agencies GF - Potential See Below See Below Cost Note:

GF=General Fund Municipal Impact:

Municipalities Effect FY 23 $ FY 24 $ Various Municipalities STATE See Below See Below MANDATE 1 - Potential Cost Explanation The bill results in a potential cost to the state and various municipalities to the extent that an employee applies for Worker's Compensation benefits and meets the condition of the bill.

For reference, this bill expands eligibility for workers’ compensation benefits for post-traumatic stress injuries (PTSI) to cover all employees coveredbytheworkers’compensationlaw.Currentlaw generallylimits eligibility for PTSI benefits to certain first responders (e.g., police officers, firefighters, emergency medical service personnel, and emergency 9-1-1 dispatchers) who are diagnosed with PTSI as a direct result of certain qualifying events that occur in the line of duty.