Senate Bill No. 132–Committee on Commerce and Labor

(On Behalf of Legislative Committee on Workers’ Compensation)

February 5, 1999

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Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor

 

SUMMARY—Revises provisions governing benefits for industrial insurance for certain police officers and firemen. (BDR 53-925)

FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: Yes.

Effect on the State or on Industrial Insurance: Yes.

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EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted. Green numbers along left margin indicate location on the printed bill (e.g., 5-15 indicates page 5, line 15).

 

AN ACT relating to industrial insurance; providing in skeleton form for the availability of benefits for industrial insurance to certain police officers for exposure to a contagious disease; limiting the availability of benefits for industrial insurance for certain retired police officers and firemen; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

1-1 Section 1. NRS 616A.035 is hereby amended to read as follows:

1-2 616A.035 1. "Accident benefits" means medical, surgical, hospital or

1-3 other treatments, nursing, medicine, medical and surgical supplies, crutches

1-4 and apparatuses, including prosthetic devices.

1-5 2. The term includes [medical] :

1-6 (a) Medical benefits as defined by NRS 617.130 [and any preventive] ;

1-7 (b) Preventive treatment administered as a precaution to an employee

1-8 who is exposed to a contagious disease while providing medical services,

1-9 including emergency medical care, in the course and scope of his

1-10 employment [.] ; and

1-11 (c) Preventive treatment administered as a precaution to an employee

1-12 of the department of prisons or an employee of the mental hygiene and

1-13 mental retardation division of the department of human resources who:

2-1 (1) Qualifies as a police officer pursuant to subsection 7 or 9 of

2-2 NRS 617.135, as appropriate; and

2-3 (2) Was exposed to a contagious disease when battered by an

2-4 offender or when responding to a physical altercation between offenders

2-5 at an institution or facility of the department of prisons or at a facility for

2-6 mentally disordered offenders, as appropriate, in the course and scope of

2-7 his employment,

2-8 if the battery or employee’s response to the altercation is documented by

2-9 the creation and maintenance of a report concerning the battery or

2-10 altercation by the department of prisons or the mental hygiene and

2-11 mental retardation division of the department of human resources, as

2-12 appropriate.

2-13 3. The term does not include:

2-14 (a) Exercise equipment, a hot tub or a spa for an employee’s home;

2-15 (b) Membership in an athletic or health club;

2-16 (c) Except as otherwise provided in NRS 616C.245, a motor vehicle; or

2-17 (d) The costs of operating a motor vehicle provided pursuant to NRS

2-18 616C.245, fees related to the operation or licensing of the motor vehicle or

2-19 insurance for the motor vehicle.

2-20 4. As used in this section, the term:

2-21 (a) "Battery" includes, without limitation, the intentional propelling

2-22 or placing, or the causing to be propelled or placed, of any human

2-23 excrement or bodily fluid upon the person of an employee.

2-24 (b) "Preventive treatment" includes, without limitation, tests to

2-25 determine if an employee has contracted the contagious disease to which

2-26 he was exposed.

2-27 Sec. 2. NRS 616A.065 is hereby amended to read as follows:

2-28 616A.065 1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 3, "average

2-29 monthly wage" means the lesser of:

2-30 (a) The monthly wage actually received or deemed to have been

2-31 received by the employee on the date of the accident or injury to the

2-32 employee, or, in the case of a fireman or police officer who is entitled to

2-33 compensation pursuant to NRS 617.455 or 617.457 and who is no longer

2-34 employed as such a fireman or police officer, the date of the termination

2-35 of his employment, excluding remuneration from employment:

2-36 (1) Not subject to the Nevada Industrial Insurance Act or the Nevada

2-37 Occupational Diseases Act; and

2-38 (2) For which coverage is elective, but has not been elected; or

2-39 (b) One hundred fifty percent of the state average weekly wage as most

2-40 recently computed by the employment security division of the department

2-41 of employment, training and rehabilitation during the fiscal year preceding

2-42 the date of the injury or accident, multiplied by 4.33.

3-1 2. For the purposes of subsection 1:

3-2 (a) The date of the accident or injury to the employee must be

3-3 determined pursuant to NRS 616C.425.

3-4 (b) The wage received by a fireman or police officer who is entitled to

3-5 compensation pursuant to NRS 617.455 or 617.457 and who is no longer

3-6 employed as such a fireman or police officer is the average wage received

3-7 by the fireman or police officer over the last 12 weeks of his employment.

3-8 (c) "Wage":

3-9 (1) Does not include any amount paid by an employer for health

3-10 insurance that covers an employee or his dependents, or both.

3-11 (2) Is increased by the amount of tips reported by an employee to his

3-12 employer pursuant to 26 U.S.C. § 6053(a), except:

3-13 (I) Tips in a form other than cash; and

3-14 (II) Tips in cash which total less than $20 per month.

3-15 3. For the purpose of increasing compensation for permanent total

3-16 disability pursuant to NRS 616C.465 or increasing death benefits pursuant

3-17 to NRS 616C.520, "average monthly wage" has the meaning shown in the

3-18 following schedule:

3-19 Average Monthly Wage

3-20 Effective Date for Prior Fiscal Year

3-21 July 1, 1973 $688.60

3-22 July 1, 1974 727.48

3-23 July 1, 1975 1,142.21

3-24 July 1, 1976 1,211.00

3-25 July 1, 1977 1,287.44

3-26 July 1, 1978 1,377.08

3-27 July 1, 1979 1,488.46

3-28 July 1, 1980 1,591.86

3-29 Sec. 3. NRS 616A.265 is hereby amended to read as follows:

3-30 616A.265 1. "Injury" or "personal injury" means a sudden and

3-31 tangible happening of a traumatic nature, producing an immediate or

3-32 prompt result which is established by medical evidence, including injuries

3-33 to prosthetic devices. Any injury sustained by an employee while engaging

3-34 in an athletic or social event sponsored by his employer shall be deemed

3-35 not to have arisen out of or in the course of employment unless the

3-36 employee received remuneration for participation in the event.

3-37 2. For the purposes of chapters 616A to 616D, inclusive, of NRS:

4-1 (a) Coronary thrombosis, coronary occlusion, or any other ailment or

4-2 disorder of the heart, and any death or disability ensuing therefrom, shall be

4-3 deemed not to be an injury by accident sustained by an employee arising

4-4 out of and in the course of his employment.

4-5 (b) The exposure of an employee to a contagious disease while

4-6 providing medical services, including emergency medical care, in the

4-7 course and scope of his employment shall be deemed to be an injury by

4-8 accident sustained by the employee arising out of and in the course of his

4-9 employment.

4-10 (c) The exposure to a contagious disease of an employee of the

4-11 department of prisons or an employee of the mental hygiene and mental

4-12 retardation division of the department of human resources who:

4-13 (1) Qualifies as a police officer pursuant to subsection 7 or 9 of

4-14 NRS 617.135, as appropriate; and

4-15 (2) Was exposed to the contagious disease when battered by an

4-16 offender or when responding to a physical altercation between offenders

4-17 at an institution or facility of the department of prisons or at a facility for

4-18 mentally disordered offenders, as appropriate, in the course and scope of

4-19 his employment,

4-20 shall be deemed to be an injury by accident sustained by the employee

4-21 arising out of and in the course of his employment if the battery or

4-22 employee’s response to the altercation is documented by the creation and

4-23 maintenance of a report concerning the battery or altercation by the

4-24 department of prisons or the mental hygiene and mental retardation

4-25 division of the department of human resources, as appropriate. As used

4-26 in this paragraph, the term "battery" includes, without limitation, the

4-27 intentional propelling or placing, or the causing to be propelled or

4-28 placed, of any human excrement or bodily fluid upon the person of an

4-29 employee.

4-30 Sec. 4. Chapter 616C of NRS is hereby amended by adding thereto a

4-31 new section to read as follows:

4-32 1. If an employee of the department of prisons or an employee of the

4-33 mental hygiene and mental retardation division of the department of

4-34 human resources, who qualifies as a police officer pursuant to

4-35 subsection 7 or 9 of NRS 617.135, as appropriate, is battered by an

4-36 offender or responds to a physical altercation between offenders at an

4-37 institution or facility of the department of prisons or at a facility for

4-38 mentally disordered offenders, in the course and scope of his

4-39 employment, the department of prisons or the mental hygiene and mental

4-40 retardation division of the department of human resources, as

5-1 appropriate, shall create and maintain a report concerning the battery or

5-2 altercation that includes, without limitation, the name of each employee

5-3 who was a victim of the battery or responded to the altercation and the

5-4 name of each offender involved in the battery or altercation.

5-5 2. A person who:

5-6 (a) Was employed as a police officer, as that term is defined in

5-7 subsection 7 or 9 of NRS 617.135; and

5-8 (b) After his employment is terminated, voluntarily or involuntarily, is

5-9 diagnosed with a contagious disease to which he was exposed in the

5-10 course and scope of his employment with the department of prisons or

5-11 the mental hygiene and mental retardation division of the department of

5-12 human resources,

5-13 may not receive compensation for that contagious disease pursuant to

5-14 chapters 616A to 616D, inclusive, or chapter 617 of NRS, unless the

5-15 diagnosis occurs within a period that begins with the last date the person

5-16 actually worked as such a police officer and extends for a period

5-17 calculated by multiplying 4 months by the number of full years of his

5-18 employment.

5-19 3. As used in this section, the term "battery" includes, without

5-20 limitation, the intentional propelling or placing, or the causing to be

5-21 propelled or placed, of any human excrement or bodily fluid upon the

5-22 person of an employee.

5-23 Sec. 5. NRS 616C.160 is hereby amended to read as follows:

5-24 616C.160 If, after a claim for compensation is filed pursuant to NRS

5-25 616C.020:

5-26 1. The injured employee seeks treatment from a physician or

5-27 chiropractor for a newly developed injury or disease; and

5-28 2. The employee’s medical records for the injury reported do not

5-29 include a reference to the injury or disease for which treatment is being

5-30 sought, or there is no documentation indicating that there was possible

5-31 exposure to an injury described in paragraph (b) or (c) of subsection 2 of

5-32 NRS 616A.265,

5-33 the injury or disease for which treatment is being sought must not be

5-34 considered part of the employee’s original claim for compensation unless

5-35 the physician or chiropractor establishes by medical evidence a causal

5-36 relationship between the injury or disease for which treatment is being

5-37 sought and the original accident.

5-38 Sec. 6. Chapter 617 of NRS is hereby amended by adding thereto a

5-39 new section to read as follows:

5-40 1. To determine the insurer who is responsible for the compensation

5-41 that is payable to a person who:

5-42 (a) Is eligible for compensation for a disease of the lungs or the heart

5-43 pursuant to the provisions of NRS 617.455 or 617.457; and

6-1 (b) At the time of diagnosis of the disease of the lungs or the heart, is

6-2 no longer working as such a fireman or police officer,

6-3 the rule stated in subsection 2 must be applied.

6-4 2. The required compensation must be provided by:

6-5 (a) If the disease is a new disease of the lungs or the heart or an

6-6 aggravation of a previously diagnosed disease of the lungs or heart, the

6-7 insurer of the employer of the fireman or police officer at the most recent

6-8 time of exposure to conditions that bear a causal relation to the:

6-9 (1) New disease; or

6-10 (2) Aggravation of the previously diagnosed disease; or

6-11 (b) If the disease of the lungs or the heart is a recurrence of a

6-12 previously diagnosed disease of the lungs or the heart, the insurer of the

6-13 employer of the fireman or police officer at the most recent time of

6-14 exposure to conditions that bear a causal relation to the previously

6-15 diagnosed disease of the lungs or heart.

6-16 Sec. 7. NRS 617.455 is hereby amended to read as follows:

6-17 617.455 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter [,]

6-18 and except as otherwise provided in subsections 8 and 9, diseases of the

6-19 lungs, resulting in either temporary or permanent disability or death, are

6-20 occupational diseases and compensable as such under the provisions of this

6-21 chapter if caused by exposure to heat, smoke, fumes, tear gas or any other

6-22 noxious gases, arising out of and in the course of the employment of a

6-23 person who, for 2 years or more, has been:

6-24 (a) Employed in this state in a full-time salaried occupation of fire

6-25 fighting for the benefit or safety of the public;

6-26 (b) Acting as a volunteer fireman in this state and is entitled to the

6-27 benefits of chapters 616A to 616D, inclusive, of NRS pursuant to the

6-28 provisions of NRS 616A.145; or

6-29 (c) Employed in a full-time salaried occupation as a police officer in this

6-30 state.

6-31 2. Except as provided in subsection 3, each employee who is to be

6-32 covered for diseases of the lungs pursuant to the provisions of this section

6-33 shall submit to a physical examination, including a thorough test of the

6-34 functioning of his lungs and the making of an X-ray film of his lungs, upon

6-35 employment, upon commencement of the coverage, once every even-

6-36 numbered year until he is 40 years of age or older and thereafter on an

6-37 annual basis . [during his employment.] Failure to submit to the physical

6-38 examinations required by this subsection excludes the employee from the

6-39 benefits of this section if submitting to the examinations is within the

6-40 ability of the employee.

6-41 3. A thorough test of the functioning of the lungs is not required for a

6-42 volunteer fireman.

7-1 4. All physical examinations required pursuant to subsection 2 must be

7-2 paid for by the employer.

7-3 5. [A disease of the lungs is conclusively presumed to have arisen out

7-4 of and in the course of the employment of a person who has been employed

7-5 in a full-time continuous, uninterrupted and salaried occupation as a police

7-6 officer or fireman for 5 years or more before the date of disablement.

7-7 6.] Failure to correct predisposing conditions which lead to lung

7-8 disease when so ordered in writing by the examining physician after the

7-9 annual examination excludes the employee from the benefits of this section

7-10 if the correction is within the ability of the employee.

7-11 [7. A]

7-12 6. Except as otherwise provided in subsections 8 and 9, a person who

7-13 is determined to be:

7-14 (a) Partially disabled from an occupational disease pursuant to the

7-15 provisions of this section; and

7-16 (b) Incapable of performing, with or without remuneration, work as a

7-17 fireman or police officer,

7-18 may elect to receive the benefits provided under NRS 616C.440 for a

7-19 permanent total disability.

7-20 7. A disease of the lungs is conclusively presumed to have arisen out

7-21 of and in the course of the employment of a person who has been

7-22 employed in a full-time continuous, uninterrupted and salaried

7-23 occupation as a police officer or fireman for 5 years or more before the

7-24 date of disablement. This presumption applies to a disease of the lungs

7-25 diagnosed when the person is no longer employed in the qualifying

7-26 capacity if the diagnosis occurs within a period which begins with the last

7-27 date the employee actually worked in the qualifying capacity and extends

7-28 for a period calculated by multiplying 4 months by the number of full

7-29 years of his employment.

7-30 8. A person who, when diagnosed with a disease of the lungs:

7-31 (a) Has satisfied the criteria for eligibility for compensation set forth

7-32 in this section;

7-33 (b) Is not employed in the qualifying capacity; and

7-34 (c) Is receiving retirement benefits,

7-35 is entitled to receive medical benefits for the disease of the lungs but is

7-36 not entitled to receive compensation for temporary or permanent

7-37 disability.

7-38 9. A person who begins receiving retirement benefits while receiving

7-39 compensation for temporary or permanent disability pursuant to this

7-40 section:

7-41 (a) Is not entitled to continue receiving compensation for the

7-42 disability; and

8-1 (b) Shall immediately notify the insurer who is providing the

8-2 compensation that he has elected to receive retirement benefits.

8-3 Sec. 8. NRS 617.457 is hereby amended to read as follows:

8-4 617.457 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter [,]

8-5 and except as otherwise provided in subsections 8 and 9, diseases of the

8-6 heart of a person who, for 5 years or more, has been employed in a full-

8-7 time continuous, uninterrupted and salaried occupation as a fireman or

8-8 police officer in this state before the date of disablement are conclusively

8-9 presumed to have arisen out of and in the course of the employment. This

8-10 presumption applies to a disease of the heart diagnosed after the

8-11 termination of the person’s employment if the diagnosis occurs within a

8-12 period which begins with the last date the employee actually worked in

8-13 the qualifying capacity and extends for a period calculated by

8-14 multiplying 4 months by the number of full years of his employment.

8-15 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, diseases of the

8-16 heart, resulting in either temporary or permanent disability or death, are

8-17 occupational diseases and compensable as such under the provisions of this

8-18 chapter if caused by extreme overexertion in times of stress or danger and a

8-19 causal relationship can be shown by competent evidence that the disability

8-20 or death arose out of and was caused by the performance of duties as a

8-21 volunteer fireman by a person entitled to the benefits of chapters 616A to

8-22 616D, inclusive, of NRS pursuant to the provisions of NRS 616A.145 and

8-23 who, for 5 years or more, has served continuously as a volunteer fireman in

8-24 this state and who has not reached the age of 55 years before the onset of

8-25 the disease.

8-26 3. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 4, each employee who is

8-27 to be covered for diseases of the heart pursuant to the provisions of this

8-28 section shall submit to a physical examination, including an examination of

8-29 the heart, upon employment, upon commencement of coverage and

8-30 thereafter on an annual basis . [during his employment.] Failure to submit

8-31 to the physical examinations required by this subsection excludes the

8-32 employee from the benefits of this section if submitting to the

8-33 examinations is within the ability of the employee.

8-34 4. A physical examination is not required for a volunteer fireman more

8-35 than once every 3 years after an initial examination.

8-36 5. All physical examinations required pursuant to subsection 3 must be

8-37 paid for by the employer.

8-38 6. Failure to correct predisposing conditions which lead to heart

8-39 disease when so ordered in writing by the examining physician subsequent

8-40 to the annual examination excludes the employee from the benefits of this

8-41 section if the correction is within the ability of the employee.

9-1 7. [A] Except as otherwise provided in subsections 8 and 9, a person

9-2 who is determined to be:

9-3 (a) Partially disabled from an occupational disease pursuant to the

9-4 provisions of this section; and

9-5 (b) Incapable of performing, with or without remuneration, work as a

9-6 fireman or police officer,

9-7 may elect to receive the benefits provided under NRS 616C.440 for a

9-8 permanent total disability.

9-9 8. A person who, when diagnosed with a disease of the heart:

9-10 (a) Has satisfied the criteria for eligibility for compensation set forth

9-11 in this section;

9-12 (b) Is not employed in the qualifying capacity; and

9-13 (c) Is receiving retirement benefits,

9-14 is entitled to receive medical benefits for the disease of the heart but is

9-15 not entitled to receive compensation for temporary or permanent

9-16 disability.

9-17 9. A person who begins receiving retirement benefits while receiving

9-18 compensation for temporary or permanent disability pursuant to this

9-19 section:

9-20 (a) Is not entitled to continue receiving compensation for the

9-21 disability; and

9-22 (b) Shall immediately notify the insurer who is providing the

9-23 compensation that he has elected to receive retirement benefits.

9-24 10. Claims filed under this section may be reopened at any time during

9-25 the life of the claimant for further examination and treatment of the

9-26 claimant upon certification by a physician of a change of circumstances

9-27 related to the occupational disease which would warrant an increase or

9-28 rearrangement of compensation.

9-29 Sec. 9. The provisions of this act do not apply to an employee who,

9-30 before July 1, 1999, is receiving compensation pursuant to the provisions of

9-31 chapters 616A to 616D, inclusive, or chapter 617 of NRS.

9-32 Sec. 10. This act becomes effective on July 1, 1999.

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