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CORRECTED VERSION
As Passed by the Senate
122nd General Assembly
Regular Session
1997-1998 | Am. Sub. H. B. No. 558 |
REPRESENTATIVES WISE-CATES-WESTON-MAIER-COUGHLIN-GARCIA-
METELSKY-MALLORY-THOMAS-O'BRIEN-NETZLEY-JAMES-GRENDELL-
HOUSEHOLDER-COLONNA-JACOBSON-PRINGLE-HEALY-BOYD-LUCAS-SULZER-
HARRIS-HODGES-WACHTMANN-PATTON-HARTLEY-LOGAN-WILLIAMS-
MOTTLEY-KRUPINSKI-KASPUTIS-DAMSCHRODER-STAPLETON-CAREY-
REID-MYERS-TERWILLEGER-PADGETT-SALERNO-VERICH-SUTTON-
TAVARES-MOTTL-VESPER-PERZ-FORD-SAWYER-YOUNG-OPFER-BEATTY-
JONES-METZGER-JOHNSON-BENDER-KREBS-WOMER BENJAMIN-ALLEN-
CLANCY-BATEMAN-CALLENDER-ROMAN-BUCHY-PRENTISS-WILSON-
JERSE-MILLER-BRITTON-OLMAN-SCHULER-
SENATORS SUHADOLNIK-
WATTS-FINAN-GAETH-LATTA-DiDONATO-DRAKE-CARNES-OELSLAGER-HOWARD-
HOTTINGER-RAY-MUMPER-B. JOHNSON-NEIN-WHITE-BLESSING-ESPY-
GARDNER
A BILL
To amend sections 4121.12, 4123.01, and 4123.46 of the Revised Code to provide
workers' compensation
coverage for off-duty peace officers, firefighters,
and emergency medical
technicians who are
injured or killed while
responding to an emergency
situation, to require that payment for those claims be paid
from the Workers'
Compensation Surplus Fund
rather than the State Insurance
Fund, and to require the Workers' Compensation Oversight Commission to meet a
minimum of nine times annually.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 4121.12, 4123.01, and 4123.46 of the Revised Code be
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 4121.12. (A) There is hereby created the workers'
compensation oversight commission consisting of nine members, of
which members the governor shall appoint five with the advice and consent of
the senate. Of the five members the governor appoints, two shall be
individuals who, on
account of their previous vocation, employment, or affiliations,
can be classed as representative of employees, at least one of whom is
representative of employees who are members of an employee organization; two
shall be individuals who, on account of their previous vocation, employment,
or affiliations, can be classed as representative of employers, one of whom
represents self-insuring employers and one of whom has experience as an
employer in compliance with section 4123.35 of the Revised Code
other than a self-insuring employer, and one of those two representatives also
shall represent employers whose employees are not members of an employee
organization; and one shall represent the public and also be an individual
who, on account of the individual's previous vocation, employment, or
affiliations, cannot be classed as either predominantly representative of
employees or of employers. The
governor shall select the chairperson of the
commission who shall serve as chairperson at the pleasure of the
governor. No more than three members
appointed by the governor shall belong to or be affiliated with the same
political party.
Each of these five members shall have at least three years'
experience in the field of insurance, finance, workers'
compensation, law, accounting, actuarial, personnel, investments,
or data processing, or in the management of an organization whose
size is commensurate with that of the bureau of workers'
compensation. At least one of these five members shall be an
attorney licensed under Chapter 4705. of the Revised Code to practice
law in this state.
(B) Of the initial appointments made to the
commission, the governor shall appoint one member who represents
employees to a term ending one year after September 1,
1995, one member who
represents employers to a term ending two
years after the effective date of
this section SEPTEMBER 1, 1995, the member who
represents the public to a term
ending three years after September 1, 1995, one member who represents
employees to a term ending four years after September 1,
1995, and one member who represents employers to a term
ending five years after September 1, 1995. Thereafter, terms of office shall
be for five years, with each term ending on the same day of the same
month as did the term that it succeeds. Each member shall hold office from
the date of his THE MEMBER'S appointment until the end of the term for
which the
member was appointed.
The governor shall not appoint any person to more than two
full terms of office on the commission. This restriction does
not prevent the governor from appointing a person to fill a
vacancy caused by the death, resignation, or removal of a
commission member and also appointing that person twice to full
terms on the commission, or from appointing a person previously
appointed to fill less than a full term twice to full terms on
the commission. Any member appointed to fill a vacancy occurring
prior to the expiration date of the term for which the
member's predecessor was appointed shall hold office as a member for the
remainder of that term. A member shall continue in office subsequent to the
expiration date of the member's term until a successor takes
office or until a period of sixty days has elapsed, whichever
occurs first.
(C) In making appointments to the commission, the governor shall
select the members from the list of names
submitted by the workers' compensation oversight commission
nominating committee pursuant to this division. Within fourteen
days after the governor calls the initial meeting of the nominating committee
pursuant to division (C) of section 4121.123 of the Revised Code, the
nominating committee shall submit to the governor, for the initial
appointments, a list containing four separate names for each of the members on
the commission. Within
fourteen days after the submission of the list, the governor
shall appoint individuals from the list.
For the appointment of the member who is representative of employees who
are members of an employee organization, both for initial appointments and for
the filling of vacancies, the list of four names submitted by the nominating
committee shall be comprised of four individuals who are members of the
executive committee of the largest statewide labor federation.
Thereafter, within sixty days after a vacancy
occurring as a result of the expiration of a term and within
thirty days after other vacancies occurring on the commission, the nominating
committee shall submit a list containing four names for each vacancy. Within
fourteen days after the submission of the list, the governor shall appoint
individuals from the list. With respect to the filling of
vacancies, the nominating committee shall provide the governor with a list of
four individuals who are, in the judgment of the nominating committee, the
most fully qualified to accede to membership on the
commission. The nominating committee shall not include the name of
an individual upon the list for the filling of vacancies if the appointment of
that individual by the governor would result in more than three members of the
commission belonging to or being affiliated with the same political party.
The committee shall include on the list for the filling of vacancies only the
names of attorneys admitted to practice law in this state if, to fulfill the
requirement of division (A) of section 4121.12 of the Revised Code, the
vacancy must be filled by an attorney.
In order for the name of an individual to be submitted to the
governor under this division, the nominating committee shall approve the
individual by an affirmative vote of a majority of its members.
(D) The remaining four members of the commission
shall be the chairperson and ranking minority member of
the standing committees of the house of representatives and of the senate to
which legislation concerning this chapter and Chapters 4123., 4127., and 4131.
of the Revised Code normally are
referred, or a designee of the chairperson or ranking
minority member, provided
that the designee is a member of the standing committee. Legislative members
shall serve during the session of the general
assembly to which they are elected and for as long as they are members of the
general assembly. Legislative members shall serve in an advisory capacity to
the commission and shall have no voting rights on matters coming before the
commission. Membership on the commission by legislative members shall not be
deemed as holding a public office.
(E) All members of the commission shall receive
their reasonable
and necessary expenses pursuant to section 126.31 of the Revised Code while
engaged in the
performance of their duties as members. Legislative members
also shall receive fifty dollars per meeting that they attend. Members
appointed by the governor also shall receive an annual salary as follows:
(1) On and before August 31, 1998, not to exceed
six thousand dollars payable at
the rate of five hundred dollars per month. A member shall receive
the monthly five hundred dollar salary only if
the member has attended at least one
meeting of the commission during that month. A member may receive no more
than the monthly five hundred dollar salary regardless of the number of
meetings held by the commission during a month or the number of meetings
in excess of one within a month that the member attends.
(2) After August 31, 1998, not to exceed eighteen
thousand dollars payable at the rate of fifteen hundred dollars per month.
A ON THE FOLLOWING BASIS:
(a) EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN DIVISION
(E)(2)(b) OF THIS SECTION, A member shall receive
the monthly fifteen hundred dollar salary only if TWO THOUSAND
DOLLARS DURING A MONTH IN WHICH the
member has attended at least ATTENDS one meeting OR
MORE MEETINGS of the commission during that month
AND SHALL RECEIVE NO PAYMENT DURING A MONTH IN WHICH THE MEMBER ATTENDS NO
MEETING OF THE COMMISSION. A
(b) A member may receive no more than the monthly fifteen
hundred ANNUAL EIGHTEEN THOUSAND dollar salary
regardless of the number of meetings held by the commission during the
month A YEAR
or the number of meetings in excess of one NINE within a
month YEAR that the member
attends.
THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE COMMISSION SHALL SET THE MEETING DATES OF THE
COMMISSION AS NECESSARY TO PERFORM THE DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION UNDER THIS
CHAPTER AND CHAPTERS 4123., 4127., AND 4131. OF THE REVISED
CODE. THE COMMISSION SHALL MEET AT LEAST NINE TIMES DURING THE
PERIOD COMMENCING
ON THE FIRST DAY OF SEPTEMBER AND ENDING ON THE THIRTY-FIRST DAY OF
AUGUST OF THE FOLLOWING YEAR. The administrator of
workers' compensation shall
provide professional and
clerical assistance to the commission, as the commission considers
appropriate.
(F) The commission shall:
(1) Review progress of the bureau in meeting its
cost and quality objectives and in complying with this chapter
and
Chapters 4123., 4127., and 4131. of the Revised Code;
(2) Issue an annual report on the cost and quality objectives of the
bureau
to the president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives,
and the governor;
(3) Review all independent financial audits of the bureau. The
administrator shall provide access to records of the bureau to facilitate the
review required under this division.
(4) Study issues as requested by the administrator or the governor;
(5) Contract with an independent actuarial firm to assist the commission
in making recommendations to the administrator regarding premium rates;
(6) Establish objectives, policies, and
criteria for the
administration of the investment program that include
asset allocation targets and ranges, risk factors, asset class
benchmarks, time horizons, total return objectives, and
performance evaluation guidelines, and
monitor the administrator's progress in implementing the
objectives, policies, and criteria on a quarterly basis. The commission
shall
publish the objectives, policies, and criteria no less than
annually and shall make copies available to interested parties. The
commission shall prohibit, on a prospective basis,
specific investment activity it finds to be contrary to its investment
objectives, policies, and criteria.
The investment policy in existence on March 7, 1997,
shall continue until the commission approves objectives, policies, and
criteria for the administration of the investment program pursuant to this
section.
(7) Advise and consent on all of the following:
(a) Administrative rules the administrator submits
to it pursuant to division (B)(5) of section 4121.121 of the Revised Code for
the
classification of occupations or industries, for premium rates and
contributions, for the amount to be credited to the surplus fund, for rules
and systems of rating, rate revisions, and merit rating;
(b) The overall
policy of the bureau of workers' compensation as set by the administrator;
(c) The duties and authority conferred upon the
administrator pursuant to section 4121.37 of the Revised Code;
(d) Rules the administrator adopts for the health partnership
program and the qualified health plan system, as provided in sections 4121.44,
4121.441, and 4121.442 of the Revised Code.
(8) Perform all duties required under section 4121.125 of the Revised
Code;
(9) After August 31, 2000, appoint an administrator who meets
the qualifications required under section 4121.121 of the Revised Code and fix
the salary of the
administrator, the amount of which the commission shall base upon the
experience
of the administrator and the responsibilities and duties of the administrator
pursuant to this chapter and Chapters 4123., 4127., and 4131. of the Revised
Code.
(G) The commission may enter into an employment contract with an
administrator it appoints, provided that the contract does not exceed two
years in length.
(I)(H) As used in this section, "employee organization" means
any
labor or bona fide organization in which employees participate and which
exists
for the purpose, in whole or in part, of dealing with employers concerning
grievances, labor disputes, wages, hours, terms and other conditions of
employment.
Sec. 4123.01. As used in this chapter:
(A)(1) "Employee" means:
(a) Every person in the service of the state, or of any
county, municipal corporation, township, or school district
therein, including regular members of lawfully constituted police
and fire departments of municipal corporations and townships,
whether paid or volunteer, and wherever serving within the state
or on temporary assignment outside thereof, and executive
officers of boards of education, under any appointment or
contract of hire, express or implied, oral or written, including
any elected official of the state, or of any county, municipal
corporation, or township, or members of boards of education;
AS USED IN DIVISION (A)(1)(a) OF THIS SECTION, THE
TERM "REGULAR MEMBERS OF LAWFULLY CONSTITUTED POLICE AND FIRE DEPARTMENTS"
INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING PERSONS WHEN THE PERSON RESPONDS TO AN INHERENTLY
DANGEROUS SITUATION THAT CALLS FOR AN IMMEDIATE RESPONSE ON THE PART OF THE
PERSON, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE PERSON IS WITHIN THE LIMITS OF THE
JURISDICTION OF THE PERSON'S REGULAR
EMPLOYMENT OR VOLUNTARY SERVICE WHEN RESPONDING, ON THE CONDITION THAT THE
PERSON RESPONDS TO THE SITUATION AS THE PERSON OTHERWISE WOULD IF THE PERSON
WERE ON DUTY IN THE PERSON'S JURISDICTION.
(i) OFF-DUTY PEACE OFFICERS. AS USED IN DIVISION
(A)(1)(a)(i) OF THIS SECTION, "PEACE OFFICER"
MEANS A MEMBER OF THE ORGANIZED POLICE
DEPARTMENT OF ANY MUNICIPAL CORPORATION, INCLUDING A MEMBER OF THE ORGANIZED
POLICE DEPARTMENT OF A MUNICIPAL CORPORATION IN AN ADJOINING STATE SERVING IN
OHIO UNDER A CONTRACT PURSUANT TO SECTION
737.04 OF THE REVISED
CODE, MEMBER OF A POLICE FORCE EMPLOYED BY A
METROPOLITAN HOUSING AUTHORITY UNDER DIVISION
(D) OF SECTION 3735.31 OF THE
REVISED CODE,
MEMBER OF A POLICE FORCE EMPLOYED BY A REGIONAL TRANSIT AUTHORITY UNDER
DIVISION (Y) OF SECTION 306.05 OF THE
REVISED CODE,
STATE UNIVERSITY LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER APPOINTED UNDER SECTION 3345.04 OF THE
REVISED CODE,
OHIO VETERANS' HOME POLICE OFFICER APPOINTED
UNDER SECTION 5907.02 OF THE REVISED
CODE, POLICE CONSTABLE OF ANY TOWNSHIP,
POLICE OFFICER OF A TOWNSHIP OR JOINT TOWNSHIP POLICE DISTRICT, STATE HIGHWAY
PATROL TROOPER, AND MEMBER OF A QUALIFIED NONPROFIT CORPORATION POLICE
DEPARTMENT ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO SECTION 1702.80 of the Revised Code.
AS USED IN DIVISION (A)(1)(a) OF THIS SECTION
WITH RESPECT TO OFF-DUTY PEACE OFFICERS, "JURISDICTION" MEANS THE
LIMITS OF THE MUNICIPAL CORPORATION, TOWNSHIP, METROPOLITAN HOUSING AUTHORITY
HOUSING PROJECT, REGIONAL TRANSIT AUTHORITY FACILITIES OR AREAS OF A MUNICIPAL
CORPORATION THAT HAVE BEEN AGREED TO BY A REGIONAL TRANSIT AUTHORITY AND A
MUNICIPAL CORPORATION LOCATED WITHIN ITS TERRITORIAL JURISDICTION, COLLEGE,
UNIVERSITY, OR OHIO VETERANS' HOME IN WHICH
THE PEACE OFFICER IS APPOINTED, EMPLOYED, OR ELECTED.
(ii) OFF-DUTY FIREFIGHTERS, WHETHER PAID OR VOLUNTEER, OF A
LAWFULLY CONSTITUTED FIRE DEPARTMENT. AS USED IN DIVISION
(A)(1)(a) OF THIS SECTION
WITH RESPECT TO OFF-DUTY FIREFIGHTERS, "JURISDICTION" MEANS THE LIMITS OF THE
POLITICAL SUBDIVISION, JOINT AMBULANCE DISTRICT, FIRE DISTRICT, OR JOINT FIRE
DISTRICT IN WHICH THE FIREFIGHTER IS APPOINTED OR EMPLOYED.
(iii) OFF-DUTY FIRST RESPONDERS, EMERGENCY MEDICAL
TECHNICIANS-BASIC, EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIANS-INTERMEDIATE, OR EMERGENCY
MEDICAL TECHNICIANS-PARAMEDIC, WHETHER PAID OR VOLUNTEER, OF AN AMBULANCE
SERVICE ORGANIZATION OR EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICE ORGANIZATION PURSUANT TO
CHAPTER 4765. OF THE
REVISED CODE. AS USED IN DIVISION
(A)(1)(a) OF THIS SECTION
WITH RESPECT TO OFF-DUTY FIRST RESPONDERS AND EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIANS,
"JURISDICTION" MEANS THE LIMITS OF THE POLITICAL SUBDIVISION OR JOINT
AMBULANCE
DISTRICT IN WHICH THE FIRST RESPONDER OR EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIAN IS
EMPLOYED OR VOLUNTEERS AS A FIRST RESPONDER OR EMERGENCY MEDICAL
TECHNICIAN.
(b) Every person in the service of any person, firm, or
private corporation, including any public service corporation,
that (i) employs one or more persons regularly in the same
business or in or about the same establishment under any contract
of hire, express or implied, oral or written, including aliens
and minors, household workers who earn one hundred sixty dollars
or more in cash in any calendar quarter from a single household
and casual workers who earn one hundred sixty dollars or more in
cash in any calendar quarter from a single employer, or (ii) is
bound by any such contract of hire or by any other written
contract, to pay into the state insurance fund the premiums
provided by this chapter.
(c) Every person who performs labor or provides
services pursuant to a construction contract, as defined in
section 4123.79 of the Revised Code, if at least ten of the following criteria apply:
(i) The person is required to comply with
instructions from the other contracting party regarding the
manner or method of performing services;
(ii) The person is required by the other
contracting party to have particular training;
(iii) The person's services are
integrated into the regular functioning of the other contracting
party;
(iv) The person is required to perform the work personally;
(v) The person is hired, supervised, or paid by the other contracting party;
(vi) A continuing relationship exists
between the person and the other contracting party that
contemplates continuing or recurring work even if the work is
not full time;
(vii) The person's hours of work are
established by the other contracting party;
(viii) The person is required to devote full time
to the business of the other contracting party;
(ix) The person is required to perform the work on
the premises of the other contracting party;
(x) The person is required to follow
the order of work set by the other contracting party;
(xi) The person is required to make
oral or written reports of progress to the other contracting
party;
(xii) The person is paid for services
on a regular basis such as hourly, weekly, or monthly;
(xiii) The person's expenses are paid for by the other contracting party;
(xiv) The person's tools and
materials are furnished by the other contracting party;
(xv) The person is provided with the facilities used to perform services;
(xvi) The person does not realize a profit or
suffer a loss as a result of the services provided;
(xvii) The person is not performing
services for a number of employers at the same time;
(xviii) The person does not make the same services available to
the general public;
(xix) The other contracting party has
a right to discharge the person;
(xx) The person has the right to end
the relationship with the other contracting party without
incurring liability pursuant to an employment contract or
agreement.
Every person in the service of any independent contractor
or subcontractor who has failed to pay into the state insurance
fund the amount of premium determined and fixed by the
administrator of workers' compensation for the person's employment or
occupation or if a self-insuring employer has failed to pay
compensation and benefits directly to the employer's injured and to
the dependents of the employer's killed employees as required by
section 4123.35
of the Revised Code, shall be considered as the employee of the
person who has entered into a contract, whether written or
verbal, with such independent contractor unless such employees or
their legal representatives or beneficiaries elect, after injury
or death, to regard such independent contractor as the employer.
(2) "Employee" does not mean:
(a) A duly ordained, commissioned, or licensed minister or
assistant or associate minister of a church in the exercise of
ministry; or
(b) Any officer of a family farm corporation.
Any employer may elect to include as an "employee" within
this chapter, any person excluded from the definition of
"employee" pursuant to division (A)(2) of this section. If an
employer is a partnership, sole proprietorship, or family farm
corporation, such employer may elect to include as an "employee"
within this chapter, any member of such partnership, the owner of
the sole proprietorship, or the officers of the family farm
corporation. In the event of an election, the employer shall
serve upon the bureau of workers' compensation written notice
naming the persons to be covered, include such employee's
remuneration for premium purposes in all future payroll reports,
and no person excluded from the definition of "employee" pursuant
to division (A)(2) of this section, proprietor, or partner shall
be deemed an employee within this division until the employer has
served such notice.
For informational purposes only, the bureau shall prescribe
such language as it considers appropriate, on such of its forms
as it considers appropriate, to advise employers of their right
to elect to include as an "employee" within this chapter a sole
proprietor, any member of a partnership, the officers of a family
farm corporation, or a person excluded from the definition of
"employee" under division (A)(2)(a) of this section, that they
should check any health and disability insurance policy, or other
form of health and disability plan or contract, presently
covering them, or the purchase of which they may be considering,
to determine whether such policy, plan, or contract excludes
benefits for illness or injury that they might have elected to
have covered by workers' compensation.
(B) "Employer" means:
(1) The state, including state hospitals, each county,
municipal corporation, township, school district, and hospital
owned by a political subdivision or subdivisions other than the
state;
(2) Every person, firm, and private corporation, including
any public service corporation, that (a) has in service one or
more employees regularly in the same business or in or about the
same establishment under any contract of hire, express or
implied, oral or written, or (b) is bound by any such contract of
hire or by any other written contract, to pay into the insurance
fund the premiums provided by this chapter.
All such employers are subject to this chapter. Any member
of a firm or association, who regularly performs manual labor in
or about a mine, factory, or other establishment, including a
household establishment, shall be considered an employee in
determining whether such person, firm, or private corporation, or
public service corporation, has in its service, one or more
employees and the employer shall report the income derived from
such labor to the bureau as part of the payroll of such employer,
and such member shall thereupon be entitled to all the benefits
of an employee.
(C) "Injury" includes any injury, whether caused by
external accidental means or accidental in character and result,
received in the course of, and arising out of, the injured
employee's employment. "Injury" does not include:
(1) Psychiatric conditions except where the conditions
have arisen from an injury or occupational disease;
(2) Injury or disability caused primarily
by the natural
deterioration of tissue, an organ, or part of the body;
(3) Injury or disability incurred in voluntary
participation in an employer-sponsored recreation or fitness
activity if the employee signs a waiver of the employee's right to
compensation or benefits under this chapter prior to engaging in
the recreation or fitness activity.
(D) "Child" includes a posthumous child and a child
legally adopted prior to the injury.
(E) "Family farm corporation" means a corporation founded
for the purpose of farming agricultural land in which the
majority of the voting stock is held by and the majority of the
stockholders are persons or the spouse of persons related to each
other within the fourth degree of kinship, according to the rules
of the civil law, and at least one of the related persons is
residing on or actively operating the farm, and none of whose
stockholders are a corporation. A family farm corporation does
not cease to qualify under this division where, by reason of any
devise, bequest, or the operation of the laws of descent or
distribution, the ownership of shares of voting stock is
transferred to another person, as long as that person is within
the degree of kinship stipulated in this division.
(F) "Occupational disease" means a disease contracted in the course of
employment, which by its causes and the characteristics of its manifestation
or the condition of the employment results in a hazard which distinguishes the
employment in character from employment generally, and the employment creates
a risk of contracting the disease in greater degree and in a different manner
from the public in general.
(G) "Self-insuring employer" means any of the following
categories of employers if granted the privilege of paying
compensation and benefits directly under section 4123.35 of the
Revised Code:
(1) Any employer mentioned in division (B)(2) of this
section;
(2) A board of county hospital trustees;
(3) A publicly owned utility;
(4) A board of county commissioners for the sole purpose of constructing a
sports facility as defined in section 307.696 of the Revised Code, provided that the electors
of the county in which the sports facility is to be built have approved
construction of a sports facility by ballot election no later than
November 6, 1997.
Sec. 4123.46. The (A)(1) EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN DIVISION
(A)(2) OF THIS SECTION, THE bureau of workers' compensation shall
disburse the state insurance fund to employees of employers who
have paid into the fund the premiums applicable to the classes to
which they belong when the employees have been injured in the
course of their employment, wherever the injuries have occurred,
and provided the injuries have not been purposely self-inflicted,
or to the dependents of the employees in case death has ensued.
(2) AS LONG AS INJURIES HAVE NOT BEEN PURPOSELY SELF-INFLICTED,
THE BUREAU SHALL DISBURSE THE
SURPLUS FUND CREATED UNDER SECTION 4123.34 OF THE
REVISED CODE TO OFF-DUTY PEACE
OFFICERS, FIREFIGHTERS, EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIANS, AND FIRST RESPONDERS,
OR TO THEIR DEPENDENTS IF DEATH ENSUES, WHO ARE
INJURED WHILE RESPONDING TO INHERENTLY DANGEROUS SITUATIONS THAT
CALL FOR AN IMMEDIATE RESPONSE ON THE PART OF THE PERSON,
REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE PERSON WAS WITHIN THE LIMITS
OF THE PERSON'S JURISDICTION WHEN RESPONDING, ON THE CONDITION THAT THE PERSON
RESPONDS TO THE SITUATION AS THE PERSON OTHERWISE WOULD IF THE PERSON WERE ON
DUTY IN THE PERSON'S JURISDICTION.
AS USED IN DIVISION (A)(2) OF THIS SECTION, "PEACE OFFICER,"
"FIREFIGHTER," "EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIAN," "FIRST RESPONDER," AND
"JURISDICTION" HAVE THE SAME MEANINGS AS IN SECTION 4123.01 of the Revised Code.
(B) All self-insuring employers, in compliance with this
chapter, shall pay the compensation to injured employees, or to
the dependents of employees who have been killed in the course of
their employment, unless the injury or death of the employee was
purposely self-inflicted, and shall furnish the medical,
surgical, nurse, and hospital care and attention or funeral
expenses as would have been paid and furnished by virtue of this
chapter under a similar state of facts by the bureau out of the
state insurance fund if the employer had paid the premium into
the fund.
If any rule or regulation of a self-insuring employer
provides for or authorizes the payment of greater compensation or
more complete or extended medical care, nursing, surgical, and
hospital attention, or funeral expenses to the injured employees,
or to the dependents of the employees as may be killed, the
employer shall pay to the employees, or to the dependents of
employees killed, the amount of compensation and furnish the
medical care, nursing, surgical, and hospital attention or
funeral expenses provided by his THE SELF-INSURING EMPLOYER'S
rules and regulations.
(C) Payment to injured employees, or to their dependents in
case death has ensued, is in lieu of any and all rights of action
against the employer of the injured or killed employees.
Section 2. That existing sections 4121.12, 4123.01, and 4123.46 of the Revised
Code are hereby repealed.
Section 3. Notwithstanding sections 4123.01 and 4123.46 of the
Revised Code as amended by this act, the amendments to those
sections as they apply to state university law enforcement
officers appointed under section 3345.04 of the Revised Code,
Ohio Veterans' Home police officers appointed under section
5907.02 of the Revised Code, and state highway patrol troopers,
shall take effect July 1, 1999, and apply to the claims of those
persons that arise on and after that date for an injury or death
that occurs on and after that date.
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