The online versions of legislation provided on this website are not official. Enrolled bills are the final version passed by the Ohio General Assembly and presented to the Governor for signature. The official version of acts signed by the Governor are available from the Secretary of State's Office in the Continental Plaza, 180 East Broad St., Columbus.
|
H. B. No. 34 As IntroducedAs Introduced
130th General Assembly | Regular Session | 2013-2014 |
| |
A BILL
To amend sections 4121.129, 4121.44, 4121.441,
4123.29, 4123.291, 4123.353, 4123.37, 4123.411,
4123.47, 4123.511, 4123.512, 4123.66, 4123.82,
4123.93, and 4729.80 of the Revised Code to allow
the Administrator of Workers' Compensation to pay
for specified medical benefits during an earlier
time frame, to make changes to the Health
Partnership Program, to eliminate the $15,000
Medical-Only Program, to make other changes to the
Workers' Compensation Law, and to make
appropriations for the Bureau of Workers'
Compensation for the biennium beginning July 1,
2013, and ending June 30, 2015; and to provide
authorization and conditions for the operation of
the Bureau's programs.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 4121.129, 4121.44, 4121.441,
4123.29, 4123.291, 4123.353, 4123.37, 4123.411, 4123.47, 4123.511,
4123.512, 4123.66, 4123.82, 4123.93, and 4729.80 of the Revised
Code be amended to read as follows:
Sec. 4121.129. (A) There is hereby created the workers'
compensation audit committee consisting of at least three members.
One member shall be the member of the bureau of workers'
compensation board of directors who is a certified public
accountant. The board, by majority vote, shall appoint two
additional members of the board to serve on the audit committee
and may appoint additional members who are not board members, as
the board determines necessary. Members of the audit committee
serve at the pleasure of the board, and the board, by majority
vote, may remove any member except the member of the committee who
is the certified public accountant member of the board. The board,
by majority vote, shall determine how often the audit committee
shall meet and report to the board. If the audit committee meets
on the same day as the board holds a meeting, no member shall be
compensated for more than one meeting held on that day. The audit
committee shall do all of the following:
(1) Recommend to the board an accounting firm to perform the
annual audits analysis required under section 4123.47 of the
Revised Code;
(2) Recommend an auditing firm for the board to use when
conducting audits under section 4121.125 of the Revised Code;
(3) Review the results of each annual audit and management
review and, if any problems exist, assess the appropriate course
of action to correct those problems and develop an action plan to
correct those problems;
(4) Monitor the implementation of any action plans created
pursuant to division (A)(3) of this section;
(5) Review all internal audit reports on a regular basis.
(B) There is hereby created the workers' compensation
actuarial committee consisting of at least three members. One
member shall be the member of the board who is an actuary. The
board, by majority vote, shall appoint two additional members of
the board to serve on the actuarial committee and may appoint
additional members who are not board members, as the board
determines necessary. Members of the actuarial committee serve at
the pleasure of the board and the board, by majority vote, may
remove any member except the member of the committee who is the
actuary member of the board. The board, by majority vote, shall
determine how often the actuarial committee shall meet and report
to the board. If the actuarial committee meets on the same day as
the board holds a meeting, no member shall be compensated for more
than one meeting held on that day. The actuarial committee shall
do both of the following:
(1) Recommend actuarial consultants for the board to use for
the funds specified in this chapter and Chapters 4123., 4127., and
4131. of the Revised Code;
(2) Review calculations on rate schedules and performance
prepared by the actuarial consultants with whom the board enters
into a contract.
(C)(1) There is hereby created the workers' compensation
investment committee consisting of at least four members. Two of
the members shall be the members of the board who serve as the
investment and securities experts on the board. The board, by
majority vote, shall appoint two additional members of the board
to serve on the investment committee and may appoint additional
members who are not board members. Each additional member the
board appoints shall have at least one of the following
qualifications:
(a) Experience managing another state's pension funds or
workers' compensation funds;
(b) Expertise that the board determines is needed to make
investment decisions.
Members of the investment committee serve at the pleasure of
the board and the board, by majority vote, may remove any member
except the members of the committee who are the investment and
securities expert members of the board. The board, by majority
vote, shall determine how often the investment committee shall
meet and report to the board. If the investment committee meets on
the same day as the board holds a meeting, no member shall be
compensated for more than one meeting held on that day.
(2) The investment committee shall do all of the following:
(a) Develop the investment policy for the administration of
the investment program for the funds specified in this chapter and
Chapters 4123., 4127., and 4131. of the Revised Code in accordance
with the requirements specified in section 4123.442 of the Revised
Code;
(b) Submit the investment policy developed pursuant to
division (C)(2)(a) of this section to the board for approval;
(c) Monitor implementation by the administrator of workers'
compensation and the bureau of workers' compensation chief
investment officer of the investment policy approved by the board;
(d) Recommend outside investment counsel with whom the board
may contract to assist the investment committee in fulfilling its
duties;
(e) Review the performance of the bureau of workers'
compensation chief investment officer and any investment
consultants retained by the administrator to assure that the
investments of the assets of the funds specified in this chapter
and Chapters 4123., 4127., and 4131. of the Revised Code are made
in accordance with the investment policy approved by the board and
that the best possible return on to assure compliance with the
investment is achieved policy and effective management of the
funds.
Sec. 4121.44. (A) The administrator of workers' compensation
shall oversee the implementation of the Ohio workers' compensation
qualified health plan system as established under section 4121.442
of the Revised Code.
(B) The administrator shall direct the implementation of the
health partnership program administered by the bureau as set forth
in section 4121.441 of the Revised Code. To implement the health
partnership program, the bureau:
(1) Shall certify one or more external vendors, which shall
be known as "managed care organizations," to provide medical
management and cost containment services in the health partnership
program for a period of two years beginning on the date of
certification, consistent with the standards established under
this section;
(2) May recertify external vendors for additional periods of
two years; and
(3) May integrate the certified vendors with bureau staff and
existing bureau services for purposes of operation and training to
allow the bureau to assume operation of the health partnership
program at the conclusion of the certification periods set forth
in division (B)(1) or (2) of this section.
The bureau may enter into a contract with any vendor that is
certified by the bureau to provide medical management and cost
containment services in the health partnership program pursuant to
division (B)(1) or (2) of this section. The contract may include
incentives and penalties that may be imposed within the discretion
of the administrator based upon the vendor's compliance and
performance.
(C) Any vendor selected shall demonstrate all of the
following:
(1) Arrangements and reimbursement agreements with a provider
panel including a substantial number of the medical, professional,
and pharmacy providers currently being utilized by claimants
participating in the health partnership program, selected on the
basis of access, quality, and cost.
(2) Ability to accept a common format of medical bill data in
an electronic fashion from any provider who wishes to submit
medical bill data in that form.
(3) A computer system able to handle the volume of medical
bills and willingness to customize that system to the bureau's
needs and to be operated by the vendor's staff, bureau staff, or
some combination of both staffs.
(4) A prescription drug system where pharmacies on a
statewide basis have access to the eligibility and pricing, at a
discounted rate, of all prescription drugs.
(5) A tracking system to record all telephone calls from
claimants and providers regarding the status of submitted medical
bills so as to be able to track each inquiry.
(6) Data processing capacity to absorb all of the bureau's
medical bill processing or at least that part of the processing
which the bureau arranges to delegate.
(7) Capacity to store, retrieve, array, simulate, and model
in a relational mode all of the detailed medical bill data so that
analysis can be performed in a variety of ways and so that the
bureau and its governing authority can make informed decisions.
(8) Wide variety of software programs which translate medical
terminology into standard codes, and which reveal if a provider is
manipulating the procedures codes, commonly called "unbundling."
(9) Necessary professional staff to conduct, at a minimum,
authorizations for treatment, medical necessity, utilization
review, concurrent review, post-utilization review, and have the
attendant computer system which supports such activity and
measures the outcomes and the savings.
(10) Management experience and flexibility to be able to
react quickly to the needs of the bureau in the case of required
change in federal or state requirements.
(D) For purposes of division (C)(1) of this section, any
provider panel used by a vendor shall provide reasonable access to
providers, deliver cost-effective treatment, and achieve quality
benchmarks as established by the administrator.
(E)(1) Information contained in a vendor's application for
certification in the health partnership program, and other
information furnished to the bureau by a vendor for purposes of
obtaining certification or to comply with performance and
financial auditing requirements established by the administrator,
is for the exclusive use and information of the bureau in the
discharge of its official duties, and shall not be open to the
public or be used in any court in any proceeding pending therein,
unless the bureau is a party to the action or proceeding, but the
information may be tabulated and published by the bureau in
statistical form for the use and information of other state
departments and the public. No employee of the bureau, except as
otherwise authorized by the administrator, shall divulge any
information secured by the employee while in the employ of the
bureau in respect to a vendor's application for certification or
in respect to the business or other trade processes of any vendor
to any person other than the administrator or to the employee's
superior.
(2) Notwithstanding the restrictions imposed by division
(D)(E)(1) of this section, the governor, members of select or
standing committees of the senate or house of representatives, the
auditor of state, the attorney general, or their designees,
pursuant to the authority granted in this chapter and Chapter
4123. of the Revised Code, may examine any vendor application or
other information furnished to the bureau by the vendor. None of
those individuals shall divulge any information secured in the
exercise of that authority in respect to a vendor's application
for certification or in respect to the business or other trade
processes of any vendor to any person.
(E)(F) On and after January 1, 2001, a vendor shall not be
any insurance company holding a certificate of authority issued
pursuant to Title XXXIX of the Revised Code or any health insuring
corporation holding a certificate of authority under Chapter 1751.
of the Revised Code.
(F)(G)(1) The administrator may limit freedom of choice of
health care provider or supplier by requiring, beginning with the
period set forth in division (B)(1) or (2) of this section the
forty-sixth day after the date of the injury or the forty-sixth
day after the beginning date for treatment for the occupational
disease, that claimants shall pay an appropriate out-of-plan
copayment for selecting a medical provider not within the provider
panel of a health partnership program vendor as provided for in
this section.
(2) The administrator shall adopt rules, with the advice and
consent of the bureau of workers' compensation board of directors,
to allow an employee to continue to receive treatment from a
medical provider who is not within the provider panel of a health
partnership program vendor if the employee is receiving
appropriate and quality care from that medical provider. The rules
shall include criteria that the employee shall satisfy to be
permitted to continue to receive treatment from that medical
provider.
(3) Notwithstanding division (G)(1) of this section, an
employee who satisfies the criteria specified in the rules adopted
by the administrator pursuant to division (G)(2) of this section
may continue treatment with a medical provider not within the
provider panel of a health partnership program vendor, if the
employee is receiving appropriate and quality care from the
medical provider.
(G)(H) The administrator, six months prior to the expiration
of the bureau's certification or recertification of the vendor or
vendors as set forth in division (B)(1) or (2) of this section,
may certify and provide evidence to the governor, the speaker of
the house of representatives, and the president of the senate that
the existing bureau staff is able to match or exceed the
performance and outcomes of the external vendor or vendors and
that the bureau should be permitted to internally administer the
health partnership program upon the expiration of the
certification or recertification as set forth in division (B)(1)
or (2) of this section.
(H)(I) The administrator shall establish and operate a bureau
of workers' compensation health care data program. The
administrator shall develop reporting requirements from all
employees, employers and medical providers, medical vendors, and
plans that participate in the workers' compensation system. The
administrator shall do all of the following:
(1) Utilize the collected data to measure and perform
comparison analyses of costs, quality, appropriateness of medical
care, and effectiveness of medical care delivered by all
components of the workers' compensation system.
(2) Compile data to support activities of the selected vendor
or vendors and to measure the outcomes and savings of the health
partnership program.
(3) Publish and report compiled data on the measures of
outcomes and savings of the health partnership program and submit
the report to the president of the senate, the speaker of the
house of representatives, and the governor with the annual report
prepared under division (F)(3) of section 4121.12 of the Revised
Code. The administrator shall protect the confidentiality of all
proprietary pricing data.
(I)(J) Any rehabilitation facility the bureau operates is
eligible for inclusion in the Ohio workers' compensation qualified
health plan system or the health partnership program under the
same terms as other providers within health care plans or the
program.
(J) In (K) Notwithstanding division (G) of this section, in
areas outside the state or within the state where no qualified
health plan or an inadequate number of providers within the health
partnership program exist, the administrator shall permit
employees to use a provider not within the provider panel of a
qualified health plan or health partnership program vendor,
including, if necessary, a nonplan or nonprogram health care
provider and shall pay the provider for the services or supplies
provided to or on behalf of an employee for an injury or
occupational disease that is compensable under this chapter or
Chapter 4123., 4127., or 4131. of the Revised Code on a fee
schedule the administrator adopts.
(K)(L) No health care provider, whether certified or not,
shall charge, assess, or otherwise attempt to collect from an
employee, employer, a managed care organization, or the bureau any
amount for covered services or supplies that is in excess of the
allowed amount paid by a managed care organization, the bureau, or
a qualified health plan.
(L)(M) The administrator shall permit any employer or group
of employers who agree to abide by the rules adopted under this
section and sections 4121.441 and 4121.442 of the Revised Code to
provide services or supplies to or on behalf of an employee for an
injury or occupational disease that is compensable under this
chapter or Chapter 4123., 4127., or 4131. of the Revised Code
through qualified health plans of the Ohio workers' compensation
qualified health plan system pursuant to section 4121.442 of the
Revised Code or through the health partnership program pursuant to
section 4121.441 of the Revised Code. No amount paid under the
qualified health plan system pursuant to section 4121.442 of the
Revised Code by an employer who is a state fund employer shall be
charged to the employer's experience or otherwise be used in
merit-rating or determining the risk of that employer for the
purpose of the payment of premiums under this chapter, and if the
employer is a self-insuring employer, the employer shall not
include that amount in the paid compensation the employer reports
under section 4123.35 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 4121.441. (A) The administrator of workers'
compensation, with the advice and consent of the bureau of
workers' compensation board of directors, shall adopt rules under
Chapter 119. of the Revised Code for the health care partnership
program administered by the bureau of workers' compensation to
provide medical, surgical, nursing, drug, hospital, and
rehabilitation services and supplies to an employee for an injury
or occupational disease that is compensable under this chapter or
Chapter 4123., 4127., or 4131. of the Revised Code.
The rules shall include, but are not limited to, the
following:
(1) Procedures for the resolution of medical disputes between
an employer and an employee, an employee and a provider, or an
employer and a provider, prior to an appeal under section 4123.511
of the Revised Code. Rules the administrator adopts pursuant to
division (A)(1) of this section may specify that the resolution
procedures shall not be used to resolve disputes concerning
medical services rendered that have been approved through standard
treatment guidelines, pathways, or presumptive authorization
guidelines.
(2) Prohibitions against discrimination against any category
of health care providers;
(3) Procedures for reporting injuries to employers and the
bureau by providers;
(4) Appropriate financial incentives to reduce service cost
and insure proper system utilization without sacrificing the
quality of service;
(5) Adequate methods of peer review, utilization review,
quality assurance, and dispute resolution to prevent, and provide
sanctions for, inappropriate, excessive or not medically necessary
treatment;
(6) A timely and accurate method of collection of necessary
information regarding medical and health care service and supply
costs, quality, and utilization to enable the administrator to
determine the effectiveness of the program;
(7) Provisions for necessary emergency medical treatment for
an injury or occupational disease provided by a health care
provider who is not part of the program;
(8) Discounted pricing for all in-patient and out-patient
medical services, all professional services, and all
pharmaceutical services;
(9) Provisions for provider referrals, pre-admission and
post-admission approvals, second surgical opinions, and other cost
management techniques;
(10) Antifraud mechanisms;
(11) Standards and criteria for the bureau to utilize in
certifying or recertifying a health care provider or a vendor for
participation in the health partnership program;
(12) Standards and criteria for the bureau to utilize in
penalizing or decertifying a health care provider or a vendor from
participation in the health partnership program.
(B) The bureau may enter into a contract with any health care
provider or supplier certified by the bureau to participate in the
health partnership program pursuant to the rules adopted under
this section. The contract may include incentives and penalties
that may be imposed within the discretion of the administrator
based upon the health care provider's or supplier's compliance and
performance.
(C) The administrator shall implement the health partnership
program according to the rules the administrator adopts under this
section for the provision and payment of medical, surgical,
nursing, drug, hospital, and rehabilitation services and supplies
to an employee for an injury or occupational disease that is
compensable under this chapter or Chapter 4123., 4127., or 4131.
of the Revised Code.
Sec. 4123.29. (A) The administrator of workers'
compensation, subject to the approval of the bureau of workers'
compensation board of directors, shall do all of the following:
(1) Classify occupations or industries with respect to their
degree of hazard and determine the risks of the different classes
according to the categories the national council on compensation
insurance establishes that are applicable to employers in this
state;
(2)(a) Fix the rates of premium of the risks of the classes
based upon the total payroll in each of the classes of occupation
or industry sufficiently large to provide a fund for the
compensation provided for in this chapter and to maintain a state
insurance fund from year to year. The administrator shall set the
rates at a level that assures the solvency of the fund. Where the
payroll cannot be obtained or, in the opinion of the
administrator, is not an adequate measure for determining the
premium to be paid for the degree of hazard, the administrator may
determine the rates of premium upon such other basis, consistent
with insurance principles, as is equitable in view of the degree
of hazard, and whenever in this chapter reference is made to
payroll or expenditure of wages with reference to fixing premiums,
the reference shall be construed to have been made also to such
other basis for fixing the rates of premium as the administrator
may determine under this section.
(b) If an employer elects to obtain other-states' coverage
pursuant to section 4123.292 of the Revised Code through either
the administrator, if the administrator elects to offer such
coverage, or an other-states' insurer, calculate the employer's
premium for the state insurance fund in the same manner as
otherwise required under division (A) of this section and section
4123.34 of the Revised Code, except that when the administrator
determines the expenditure of wages, payroll, or both upon which
to base the employer's premium, the administrator shall use only
the expenditure of wages, payroll, or both attributable to the
labor performed and services provided by that employer's employees
when those employees performed labor and provided services in this
state only and to which the other-states' coverage does not apply.
(c) The administrator in setting or revising rates shall
furnish to employers an adequate explanation of the basis for the
rates set.
(3) Develop and make available to employers who are paying
premiums to the state insurance fund alternative premium plans.
Alternative premium plans shall include retrospective rating
plans. The administrator may make available plans under which an
advanced deposit may be applied against a specified deductible
amount per claim.
(4)(a) Offer to insure the obligations of employers under
this chapter under a plan that groups, for rating purposes,
employers, and pools the risk of the employers within the group
provided that the employers meet all of the following conditions:
(i) All of the employers within the group are members of an
organization that has been in existence for at least two years
prior to the date of application for group coverage;
(ii) The organization was formed for purposes other than that
of obtaining group workers' compensation under this division;
(iii) The employers' business in the organization is
substantially similar such that the risks which are grouped are
substantially homogeneous;
(iv) The group of employers consists of at least one hundred
members or the aggregate workers' compensation premiums of the
members, as determined by the administrator, are expected to
exceed one hundred fifty thousand dollars during the coverage
period;
(v) The formation and operation of the group program in the
organization will substantially improve accident prevention and
claims handling for the employers in the group;
(vi) Each employer seeking to enroll in a group for workers'
compensation coverage has an industrial insurance account in good
standing with the bureau of workers' compensation such that at the
time the agreement is processed no outstanding premiums,
penalties, or assessments are due from any of the employers.
(b) If an organization sponsors more than one employer group
to participate in group plans established under this section, that
organization may submit a single application that supplies all of
the information necessary for each group of employers that the
organization wishes to sponsor.
(c) In providing employer group plans under division (A)(4)
of this section, the administrator shall consider an employer
group as a single employing entity for purposes of group rating.
No employer may be a member of more than one group for the purpose
of obtaining workers' compensation coverage under this division.
(d) At the time the administrator revises premium rates
pursuant to this section and section 4123.34 of the Revised Code,
if the premium rate of an employer who participates in a group
plan established under this section changes from the rate
established for the previous year, the administrator, in addition
to sending the invoice with the rate revision to that employer,
shall send a copy of that invoice to the third-party administrator
that administers the group plan for that employer's group.
(e) In providing employer group plans under division (A)(4)
of this section, the administrator shall establish a program
designed to mitigate the impact of a significant claim that would
come into the experience of a private, state fund group-rated
employer or a taxing district employer for the first time and be a
contributing factor in that employer being excluded from a
group-rated plan. The administrator shall establish eligibility
criteria and requirements that such employers must satisfy in
order to participate in this program. For purposes of this
program, the administrator shall establish a discount on premium
rates applicable to employers who qualify for the program.
(f) In no event shall division (A)(4) of this section be
construed as granting to an employer status as a self-insuring
employer.
(g) The administrator shall develop classifications of
occupations or industries that are sufficiently distinct so as not
to group employers in classifications that unfairly represent the
risks of employment with the employer.
(5) Generally promote employer participation in the state
insurance fund through the regular dissemination of information to
all classes of employers describing the advantages and benefits of
opting to make premium payments to the fund. To that end, the
administrator shall regularly make employers aware of the various
workers' compensation premium packages developed and offered
pursuant to this section.
(6) Make available to every employer who is paying premiums
to the state insurance fund a program whereby the employer or the
employer's agent pays to the claimant or on behalf of the claimant
the first fifteen thousand dollars of a compensable workers'
compensation medical-only claim filed by that claimant that is
related to the same injury or occupational disease. No formal
application is required; however, an employer must elect to
participate by telephoning the bureau after July 1, 1995. Once an
employer has elected to participate in the program, the employer
will be responsible for all bills in all medical-only claims with
a date of injury the same or later than the election date, unless
the employer notifies the bureau within fourteen days of receipt
of the notification of a claim being filed that it does not wish
to pay the bills in that claim, or the employer notifies the
bureau that the fifteen thousand dollar maximum has been paid, or
the employer notifies the bureau of the last day of service on
which it will be responsible for the bills in a particular
medical-only claim. If an employer elects to enter the program,
the administrator shall not reimburse the employer for such
amounts paid and shall not charge the first fifteen thousand
dollars of any medical-only claim paid by an employer to the
employer's experience or otherwise use it in merit rating or
determining the risks of any employer for the purpose of payment
of premiums under this chapter. A certified health care provider
shall extend to an employer who participates in this program the
same rates for services rendered to an employee of that employer
as the provider bills the administrator for the same type of
medical claim processed by the bureau and shall not charge,
assess, or otherwise attempt to collect from an employee any
amount for covered services or supplies that is in excess of that
rate. If an employer elects to enter the program and the employer
fails to pay a bill for a medical-only claim included in the
program, the employer shall be liable for that bill and the
employee for whom the employer failed to pay the bill shall not be
liable for that bill. The administrator shall adopt rules to
implement and administer division (A)(6) of this section. Upon
written request from the bureau, the employer shall provide
documentation to the bureau of all medical-only bills that they
are paying directly. Such requests from the bureau may not be made
more frequently than on a semiannual basis. Failure to provide
such documentation to the bureau within thirty days of receipt of
the request may result in the employer's forfeiture of
participation in the program for such injury. The provisions of
this section shall not apply to claims in which an employer with
knowledge of a claimed compensable injury or occupational disease,
has paid wages in lieu of compensation or total disability.
(B) The administrator, with the advice and consent of the
board, by rule, may do both of the following:
(1) Grant an employer who makes the employer's semiannual
premium payment at least one month prior to the last day on which
the payment may be made without penalty, a discount as the
administrator fixes from time to time;
(2) Levy a minimum annual administrative charge upon risks
where semiannual premium reports develop a charge less than the
administrator considers adequate to offset administrative costs of
processing.
Sec. 4123.291. (A) An adjudicating committee appointed by
the administrator of workers' compensation to hear any matter
specified in divisions (B)(1) to (7) of this section shall hear
the matter within sixty days of the date on which an employer
files the request, protest, or petition. An employer desiring to
file a request, protest, or petition regarding any matter
specified in divisions (B)(1) to (7) of this section shall file
the request, protest, or petition to the adjudicating committee on
or before twenty-four months after the administrator sends notice
of the determination about which the employer is filing the
request, protest, or petition.
(B) An employer who is adversely affected by a decision of an
adjudicating committee appointed by the administrator may appeal
the decision of the committee to the administrator or the
administrator's designee. The employer shall file the appeal in
writing within thirty days after the employer receives the
decision of the adjudicating committee. The administrator or the
designee shall hear the appeal and hold a hearing, provided that
the decision of the adjudicating committee relates to one of the
following:
(1) An employer request for a waiver of a default in the
payment of premiums pursuant to section 4123.37 of the Revised
Code;
(2) An employer request for the settlement of liability as a
noncomplying employer under section 4123.75 of the Revised Code;
(3) An employer petition objecting to the an assessment of a
premium pursuant to section 4123.37 of the Revised Code and the
rules adopted pursuant to that section;
(4) An employer request for the abatement of penalties
assessed pursuant to section 4123.32 of the Revised Code and the
rules adopted pursuant to that section;
(5) An employer protest relating to an audit finding or a
determination of a manual classification, experience rating, or
transfer or combination of risk experience;
(6) Any decision relating to any other risk premium matter
under Chapters 4121., 4123., and 4131. of the Revised Code;
(7) An employer petition objecting to the amount of security
required under division (C) of section 4125.05 of the Revised Code
and the rules adopted pursuant to that section.
(C) The bureau of workers' compensation board of directors,
based upon recommendations of the workers' compensation actuarial
committee, shall establish the policy for all adjudicating
committee procedures, including, but not limited to, specific
criteria for manual premium rate adjustment.
Sec. 4123.353. (A) A public employer, except for a board of
county commissioners described in division (G) of section 4123.01
of the Revised Code, a board of a county hospital, or a publicly
owned utility, who is granted the status of self-insuring employer
pursuant to section 4123.35 of the Revised Code shall do all of
the following:
(1) Reserve funds as necessary, in accordance with sound and
prudent actuarial judgment, to cover the costs the public employer
may potentially incur to remain in compliance with this chapter
and Chapter 4121. of the Revised Code;
(2) Include all activity under this chapter and Chapter 4121.
of the Revised Code in a single fund on the public employer's
accounting records;
(3) Within ninety days after the last day of each fiscal
year, prepare and maintain a report of the reserved funds
described in division (A)(1) of this section and disbursements
made from those reserved funds;
(4) Within ninety days after the last day of each fiscal
year, obtain a written report prepared by a member of the American
academy of actuaries, certifying whether the reserved funds
described in division (A)(1) of this section are sufficient to
cover the costs the public employer may potentially incur to
remain in compliance with this chapter and Chapter 4121. of the
Revised Code, are computed in accordance with accepted loss
reserving standards, and are fairly stated in accordance with
sound loss reserving principles.
(B) A public employer who is subject to division (A) of this
section shall make the reports required by that division available
for inspection by the administrator of workers' compensation and
any other person at all reasonable times during regular business
hours.
Sec. 4123.37. In (A) As used in this section "amenable:
(1) "Amenable employer" has the same meaning as "employer" as
defined in division (J) of section 4123.32 of the Revised Code.
(2) "Assessment" means any determination by the administrator
of workers' compensation that a specific sum of money is owed by
an employer under this chapter or Chapter 4121., 4127., or 4131.
of the Revised Code, except for amounts owed by an employer
pursuant to section 4123.75 of the Revised Code.
(B) If the administrator of workers' compensation finds that
any person, firm, or private corporation, including any public
service corporation, is, or has been at any time after January 1,
1923, an amenable employer and has not complied with section
4123.35 of the Revised Code the administrator shall determine the
period during which the person, firm, or corporation was an
amenable employer and shall forthwith give notice of the
determination to the employer. Within twenty days thereafter the
employer shall furnish the bureau of workers' compensation with
the payroll covering the period included in the determination and,
if the employer is an amenable employer at the time of the
determination, shall pay a premium security deposit for the eight
months next succeeding the date of the determination and shall pay
into the state insurance fund the amount of premium applicable to
such payroll.
If the employer does not furnish the payroll and pay the
applicable premium and premium security deposit within the twenty
days, the administrator shall forthwith make an assessment of the
premium due from the employer for the period the administrator
determined the employer to be an amenable employer including the
premium security deposit according to section 4123.32 of the
Revised Code if the employer is an amenable employer at the time
of the determination, basing the assessment amount due upon the
information in the possession of the administrator.
The administrator may issue an invoice or other similar
billing notice demanding payment of any assessment, and the
employer, upon receipt of the initial invoice or other similar
billing notice, may file with the bureau a petition in writing
verified under oath by the employer, or the employer's authorized
agent having knowledge of the facts, setting forth with
particularity the items of the assessment objected to, together
with the reason for the objections.
(C) The administrator shall give to the employer assessed
written notice of the an assessment and include in that notice a
demand for payment in accordance with this division. The notice
shall be mailed to the employer at the employer's residence or
usual place of business by certified mail. Unless the employer to
whom the notice of assessment is directed files with the bureau
within twenty days after receipt thereof, a petition in writing,
verified under oath by the employer, or the employer's authorized
agent having knowledge of the facts, setting forth with
particularity the items of the assessment objected to, together
with the reason for the objections, the assessment shall become
conclusive and the amount thereof shall be due and payable from
the employer so assessed to the state insurance fund. When a
petition objecting to an assessment is filed the bureau shall
assign a time and place for the hearing of the same and shall
notify the petitioner thereof
by certified mail. When an employer
files a petition the assessment made by the administrator shall
become due and payable ten days after the bureau sends notice of
the finding made at the hearing
has been sent by certified mail
to the party assessed. An employer may first appeal an adverse
decision to the administrator or the designee of the administrator
as provided in section 4123.291 of the Revised Code, and
subsequently an appeal may be taken from any finding to the court
of common pleas of Franklin county upon the execution by the party
assessed of a bond to the state in
double the amount found due
and ordered paid by the bureau conditioned that the party will pay
any judgment and costs rendered against it for the
premium
assessment.
(D) When no petition objecting to an assessment is filed or
when a finding is made affirming or modifying an assessment after
hearing, a certified copy of the assessment as affirmed or
modified may be filed by the administrator in the office of the
clerk of the court of common pleas in any county in which the
employer has property or in which the employer has a place of
business. The clerk, immediately upon the filing of the
assessment, shall enter a judgment for the state against the
employer in the amount shown on the assessment. The judgment may
be filed by the clerk in a loose leaf book entitled "special
judgments for state insurance fund." The judgment shall bear the
same rate of interest, have the same effect as other judgments,
and be given the same preference allowed by law on other judgments
rendered for claims for taxes. An assessment or judgment under
this section shall not be a bar to the adjustment of the
employer's account upon the employer furnishing the employer's
payroll records to the bureau.
(E) The administrator, for good cause shown, may waive a
default in the payment of premium where the default is of less
than sixty days' duration, and upon payment by the employer of the
premium for the period, the employer and the employer's employees
are entitled to all of the benefits and immunities provided by
this chapter.
Sec. 4123.411. (A) For the purpose of carrying out sections
4123.412 to 4123.418 of the Revised Code, the administrator of
workers' compensation, with the advice and consent of the bureau
of workers' compensation board of directors, shall levy an
assessment against all employers at a rate, of at least five but
not to exceed ten cents per one hundred dollars of payroll, such
rate to be determined annually for each employer group listed in
divisions (A)(1) to (3) of this section, which will produce an
amount no greater than the amount the administrator estimates to
be necessary to carry out such sections for the period for which
the assessment is levied. In the event the amount produced by the
assessment is not sufficient to carry out such sections the
additional amount necessary shall be provided from the income
produced as a result of investments made pursuant to section
4123.44 of the Revised Code.
Assessments shall be levied according to the following
schedule:
(1) Private fund employers, except self-insuring
employers--in January and July of each year upon gross payrolls of
the preceding six months;
(2) Counties and taxing district employers therein, except
county hospitals that are self-insuring employers--in January of
each year upon gross payrolls of the preceding twelve months;
(3) The state as an employer--in January, April, July, and
October of each year upon gross payrolls of the preceding three
months.
Amounts assessed in accordance with this section shall be
collected from each employer as prescribed in rules the
administrator adopts.
The moneys derived from the assessment provided for in this
section shall be credited to the disabled workers' relief fund
created by section 4123.412 of the Revised Code. The administrator
shall establish by rule classifications of employers within
divisions (A)(1) to (3) of this section and shall determine rates
for each class so as to fairly apportion the costs of carrying out
sections 4123.412 to 4123.418 of the Revised Code.
(B) For all injuries and disabilities occurring on or after
January 1, 1987, the administrator, for the purposes of carrying
out sections 4123.412 to 4123.418 of the Revised Code, shall levy
an assessment against all employers at a rate per one hundred
dollars of payroll, such rate to be determined annually for each
classification of employer in each employer group listed in
divisions (A)(1) to (3) of this section, which will produce an
amount no greater than the amount the administrator estimates to
be necessary to carry out such sections for the period for which
the assessment is levied. The administrator annually shall
establish the contributions due from employers for the disabled
workers' relief fund at rates as low as possible but that will
assure sufficient moneys to guarantee the payment of any claims
against that fund.
Amounts assessed in accordance with this division shall be
billed at the same time premiums are billed and credited to the
disabled workers' relief fund created by section 4123.412 of the
Revised Code. The administrator shall determine the rates for each
class in the same manner as the administrator fixes the rates for
premiums pursuant to section 4123.29 of the Revised Code.
(C) For a self-insuring employer, the bureau of workers'
compensation shall pay to employees who are participants
regardless of the date of injury, any amounts due to the
participants under section 4123.414 of the Revised Code and shall
bill the self-insuring employer, semiannually, for all amounts
paid to a participant.
Sec. 4123.47. (A) The administrator of workers' compensation
shall have an actuarial audits analysis of the state insurance
fund and all other funds specified in this chapter and Chapters
4121., 4127., and 4131. of the Revised Code made at least once
each year. The
audits analysis shall be made and certified by
recognized insurance, credentialed property or casualty actuaries
who shall be selected by the bureau of workers' compensation board
of directors. The audits shall cover the premium rates,
classifications, and all other matters involving the
administration of the state insurance fund and all other funds
specified in this chapter and Chapters 4121., 4127., and 4131. of
the Revised Code. The expense of the
audits analysis shall be paid
from the state insurance fund. The administrator shall make copies
of the
audits analysis available to the workers' compensation
audit committee at no charge and to the public at cost.
(B) The auditor of state annually shall conduct an audit of
the administration of this chapter by the industrial commission
and the bureau of workers' compensation and the safety and hygiene
fund. The cost of the audit shall be charged to the administrative
costs of the bureau as defined in section 4123.341 of the Revised
Code. The audit shall include audits of all fiscal activities,
claims processing and handling, and employer premium collections.
The auditor shall prepare a report of the audit together with
recommendations and transmit copies of the report to the
industrial commission, the board, the administrator, the governor,
and to the general assembly. The auditor shall make copies of the
report available to the public at cost.
(C) The administrator may retain the services of a recognized
actuary on a consulting basis for the purpose of evaluating the
actuarial soundness of premium rates and classifications and all
other matters involving the administration of the state insurance
fund. The expense of services provided by the actuary shall be
paid from the state insurance fund.
Sec. 4123.511. (A) Within seven days after receipt of any
claim under this chapter, the bureau of workers' compensation
shall notify the claimant and the employer of the claimant of the
receipt of the claim and of the facts alleged therein. If the
bureau receives from a person other than the claimant written or
facsimile information or information communicated verbally over
the telephone indicating that an injury or occupational disease
has occurred or been contracted which may be compensable under
this chapter, the bureau shall notify the employee and the
employer of the information. If the information is provided
verbally over the telephone, the person providing the information
shall provide written verification of the information to the
bureau according to division (E) of section 4123.84 of the Revised
Code. The receipt of the information in writing or facsimile, or
if initially by telephone, the subsequent written verification,
and the notice by the bureau shall be considered an application
for compensation under section 4123.84 or 4123.85 of the Revised
Code, provided that the conditions of division (E) of section
4123.84 of the Revised Code apply to information provided verbally
over the telephone. Upon receipt of a claim, the bureau shall
advise the claimant of the claim number assigned and the
claimant's right to representation in the processing of a claim or
to elect no representation. If the bureau determines that a claim
is determined to be a compensable lost-time claim, the bureau
shall notify the claimant and the employer of the availability of
rehabilitation services. No bureau or industrial commission
employee shall directly or indirectly convey any information in
derogation of this right. This section shall in no way abrogate
the bureau's responsibility to aid and assist a claimant in the
filing of a claim and to advise the claimant of the claimant's
rights under the law.
The administrator of workers' compensation shall assign all
claims and investigations to the bureau service office from which
investigation and determination may be made most expeditiously.
The bureau shall investigate the facts concerning an injury
or occupational disease and ascertain such facts in whatever
manner is most appropriate and may obtain statements of the
employee, employer, attending physician, and witnesses in whatever
manner is most appropriate.
The administrator, with the advice and consent of the bureau
of workers' compensation board of directors, may adopt rules that
identify specified medical conditions that have a historical
record of being allowed whenever included in a claim. The
administrator may grant immediate allowance of any medical
condition identified in those rules upon the filing of a claim
involving that medical condition and may make immediate payment of
medical bills for any medical condition identified in those rules
that is included in a claim. If an employer contests the allowance
of a claim involving any medical condition identified in those
rules, and the claim is disallowed, payment for the medical
condition included in that claim shall be charged to and paid from
the surplus fund created under section 4123.34 of the Revised
Code.
(B)(1) Except as provided in division (B)(2) of this section,
in claims other than those in which the employer is a
self-insuring employer, if the administrator determines under
division (A) of this section that a claimant is or is not entitled
to an award of compensation or benefits, the administrator shall
issue an order no later than twenty-eight days after the sending
of the notice under division (A) of this section, granting or
denying the payment of the compensation or benefits, or both as is
appropriate to the claimant. After conducting an investigation
pursuant to division (A) of this section and not later than
twenty-eight days after sending the notice pursuant to division
(A) of this section, if the administrator determines that
insufficient information exists to grant or deny the payment of
compensation, benefits, or both to the claimant, the administrator
may, with notice to both parties, issue an order dismissing the
claim without prejudice. A claim that has been dismissed without
prejudice pursuant to this division shall not constitute notice to
the industrial commission or bureau of workers' compensation for
purposes of division (A) of section 4123.84 of the Revised Code
and shall not constitute an application to the industrial
commission or bureau of workers' compensation for purposes of
section 4123.85 of the Revised Code. Notwithstanding the time
limitation specified in this division for the issuance of an
order, if a medical examination of the claimant is required by
statute, the administrator promptly shall schedule the claimant
for that examination and shall issue an order no later than
twenty-eight days after receipt of the report of the examination.
The administrator shall notify the claimant and the employer of
the claimant and their respective representatives in writing of
the nature of the order and the amounts of compensation and
benefit payments involved. The employer or claimant may appeal the
order pursuant to division (C) of this section within fourteen
days after the date of the receipt of the order. The employer and
claimant may waive, in writing, their rights to an appeal under
this division.
(2) Notwithstanding the time limitation specified in division
(B)(1) of this section for the issuance of an order, if the
employer certifies a claim for payment of compensation or
benefits, or both, to a claimant, and the administrator has
completed the investigation of the claim, the payment of benefits
or compensation, or both, as is appropriate, shall commence upon
the later of the date of the certification or completion of the
investigation and issuance of the order by the administrator,
provided that the administrator shall issue the order no later
than the time limitation specified in division (B)(1) of this
section.
(3) If an appeal is made under division (B)(1) or (2) of this
section, the administrator shall forward the claim file to the
appropriate district hearing officer within seven days of the
appeal. In contested claims other than state fund claims, the
administrator shall forward the claim within seven days of the
administrator's receipt of the claim to the industrial commission,
which shall refer the claim to an appropriate district hearing
officer for a hearing in accordance with division (C) of this
section.
(C) If an employer or claimant timely appeals the order of
the administrator issued under division (B) of this section or in
the case of other contested claims other than state fund claims,
the commission shall refer the claim to an appropriate district
hearing officer according to rules the commission adopts under
section 4121.36 of the Revised Code. The district hearing officer
shall notify the parties and their respective representatives of
the time and place of the hearing.
The district hearing officer shall hold a hearing on a
disputed issue or claim within forty-five days after the filing of
the appeal under this division and issue a decision within seven
days after holding the hearing. The district hearing officer shall
notify the parties and their respective representatives in writing
of the order. Any party may appeal an order issued under this
division pursuant to division (D) of this section within fourteen
days after receipt of the order under this division.
(D) Upon the timely filing of an appeal of the order of the
district hearing officer issued under division (C) of this
section, the commission shall refer the claim file to an
appropriate staff hearing officer according to its rules adopted
under section 4121.36 of the Revised Code. The staff hearing
officer shall hold a hearing within forty-five days after the
filing of an appeal under this division and issue a decision
within seven days after holding the hearing under this division.
The staff hearing officer shall notify the parties and their
respective representatives in writing of the staff hearing
officer's order. Any party may appeal an order issued under this
division pursuant to division (E) of this section within fourteen
days after receipt of the order under this division.
(E) Upon the filing of a timely appeal of the order of the
staff hearing officer issued under division (D) of this section,
the commission or a designated staff hearing officer, on behalf of
the commission, shall determine whether the commission will hear
the appeal. If the commission or the designated staff hearing
officer decides to hear the appeal, the commission or the
designated staff hearing officer shall notify the parties and
their respective representatives in writing of the time and place
of the hearing. The commission shall hold the hearing within
forty-five days after the filing of the notice of appeal and,
within seven days after the conclusion of the hearing, the
commission shall issue its order affirming, modifying, or
reversing the order issued under division (D) of this section. The
commission shall notify the parties and their respective
representatives in writing of the order. If the commission or the
designated staff hearing officer determines not to hear the
appeal, within fourteen days after the expiration of the period in
which an appeal of the order of the staff hearing officer may be
filed as provided in division (D) of this section, the commission
or the designated staff hearing officer shall issue an order to
that effect and notify the parties and their respective
representatives in writing of that order.
Except as otherwise provided in this chapter and Chapters
4121., 4127., and 4131. of the Revised Code, any party may appeal
an order issued under this division to the court pursuant to
section 4123.512 of the Revised Code within sixty days after
receipt of the order, subject to the limitations contained in that
section.
(F) Every notice of an appeal from an order issued under
divisions (B), (C), (D), and (E) of this section shall state the
names of the claimant and employer, the number of the claim, the
date of the decision appealed from, and the fact that the
appellant appeals therefrom.
(G) All of the following apply to the proceedings under
divisions (C), (D), and (E) of this section:
(1) The parties shall proceed promptly and without
continuances except for good cause;
(2) The parties, in good faith, shall engage in the free
exchange of information relevant to the claim prior to the conduct
of a hearing according to the rules the commission adopts under
section 4121.36 of the Revised Code;
(3) The administrator is a party and may appear and
participate at all administrative proceedings on behalf of the
state insurance fund. However, in cases in which the employer is
represented, the administrator shall neither present arguments nor
introduce testimony that is cumulative to that presented or
introduced by the employer or the employer's representative. The
administrator may file an appeal under this section on behalf of
the state insurance fund; however, except in cases arising under
section 4123.343 of the Revised Code, the administrator only may
appeal questions of law or issues of fraud when the employer
appears in person or by representative.
(H) Except as provided in section 4121.63 of the Revised Code
and division (K) of this section, payments of compensation to a
claimant or on behalf of a claimant as a result of any order
issued under this chapter shall commence upon the earlier of the
following:
(1) Fourteen days after the date the administrator issues an
order under division (B) of this section, unless that order is
appealed;
(2) The date when the employer has waived the right to appeal
a decision issued under division (B) of this section;
(3) If no appeal of an order has been filed under this
section or to a court under section 4123.512 of the Revised Code,
the expiration of the time limitations for the filing of an appeal
of an order;
(4) The date of receipt by the employer of an order of a
district hearing officer, a staff hearing officer, or the
industrial commission issued under division (C), (D), or (E) of
this section.
(I) Payments Except as otherwise provided in division (B) or
(C) of section 4123.66 of the Revised Code, payments of medical
benefits payable under this chapter or Chapter 4121., 4127., or
4131. of the Revised Code shall commence upon the earlier of the
following:
(1) The date of the issuance of the staff hearing officer's
order under division (D) of this section;
(2) The date of the final administrative or judicial
determination.
(J) The administrator shall charge the compensation payments
made in accordance with division (H) of this section or medical
benefits payments made in accordance with division (I) of this
section to an employer's experience immediately after the employer
has exhausted the employer's administrative appeals as provided in
this section or has waived the employer's right to an
administrative appeal under division (B) of this section, subject
to the adjustment specified in division (H) of section 4123.512 of
the Revised Code.
(K) Upon the final administrative or judicial determination
under this section or section 4123.512 of the Revised Code of an
appeal of an order to pay compensation, if a claimant is found to
have received compensation pursuant to a prior order which is
reversed upon subsequent appeal, the claimant's employer, if a
self-insuring employer, or the bureau, shall withhold from any
amount to which the claimant becomes entitled pursuant to any
claim, past, present, or future, under Chapter 4121., 4123.,
4127., or 4131. of the Revised Code, the amount of previously paid
compensation to the claimant which, due to reversal upon appeal,
the claimant is not entitled, pursuant to the following criteria:
(1) No withholding for the first twelve weeks of temporary
total disability compensation pursuant to section 4123.56 of the
Revised Code shall be made;
(2) Forty per cent of all awards of compensation paid
pursuant to sections 4123.56 and 4123.57 of the Revised Code,
until the amount overpaid is refunded;
(3) Twenty-five per cent of any compensation paid pursuant to
section 4123.58 of the Revised Code until the amount overpaid is
refunded;
(4) If, pursuant to an appeal under section 4123.512 of the
Revised Code, the court of appeals or the supreme court reverses
the allowance of the claim, then no amount of any compensation
will be withheld.
The administrator and self-insuring employers, as
appropriate, are subject to the repayment schedule of this
division only with respect to an order to pay compensation that
was properly paid under a previous order, but which is
subsequently reversed upon an administrative or judicial appeal.
The administrator and self-insuring employers are not subject to,
but may utilize, the repayment schedule of this division, or any
other lawful means, to collect payment of compensation made to a
person who was not entitled to the compensation due to fraud as
determined by the administrator or the industrial commission.
(L) If a staff hearing officer or the commission fails to
issue a decision or the commission fails to refuse to hear an
appeal within the time periods required by this section, payments
to a claimant shall cease until the staff hearing officer or
commission issues a decision or hears the appeal, unless the
failure was due to the fault or neglect of the employer or the
employer agrees that the payments should continue for a longer
period of time.
(M) Except as otherwise provided in this section or section
4123.522 of the Revised Code, no appeal is timely filed under this
section unless the appeal is filed with the time limits set forth
in this section.
(N) No person who is not an employee of the bureau or
commission or who is not by law given access to the contents of a
claims file shall have a file in the person's possession.
(O) Upon application of a party who resides in an area in
which an emergency or disaster is declared, the industrial
commission and hearing officers of the commission may waive the
time frame within which claims and appeals of claims set forth in
this section must be filed upon a finding that the applicant was
unable to comply with a filing deadline due to an emergency or a
disaster.
As used in this division:
(1) "Emergency" means any occasion or instance for which the
governor of Ohio or the president of the United States publicly
declares an emergency and orders state or federal assistance to
save lives and protect property, the public health and safety, or
to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe.
(2) "Disaster" means any natural catastrophe or fire, flood,
or explosion, regardless of the cause, that causes damage of
sufficient magnitude that the governor of Ohio or the president of
the United States, through a public declaration, orders state or
federal assistance to alleviate damage, loss, hardship, or
suffering that results from the occurrence.
Sec. 4123.512. (A) The claimant or the employer may appeal
an order of the industrial commission made under division (E) of
section 4123.511 of the Revised Code in any injury or occupational
disease case, other than a decision as to the extent of disability
to the court of common pleas of the county in which the injury was
inflicted or in which the contract of employment was made if the
injury occurred outside the state, or in which the contract of
employment was made if the exposure occurred outside the state. If
no common pleas court has jurisdiction for the purposes of an
appeal by the use of the jurisdictional requirements described in
this division, the appellant may use the venue provisions in the
Rules of Civil Procedure to vest jurisdiction in a court. If the
claim is for an occupational disease, the appeal shall be to the
court of common pleas of the county in which the exposure which
caused the disease occurred. Like appeal may be taken from an
order of a staff hearing officer made under division (D) of
section 4123.511 of the Revised Code from which the commission has
refused to hear an appeal. The appellant shall file the notice of
appeal with a court of common pleas within sixty days after the
date of the receipt of the order appealed from or the date of
receipt of the order of the commission refusing to hear an appeal
of a staff hearing officer's decision under division (D) of
section 4123.511 of the Revised Code. The filing of the notice of
the appeal with the court is the only act required to perfect the
appeal.
If an action has been commenced in a court of a county other
than a court of a county having jurisdiction over the action, the
court, upon notice by any party or upon its own motion, shall
transfer the action to a court of a county having jurisdiction.
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this section, if
the commission determines under section 4123.522 of the Revised
Code that an employee, employer, or their respective
representatives have not received written notice of an order or
decision which is appealable to a court under this section and
which grants relief pursuant to section 4123.522 of the Revised
Code, the party granted the relief has sixty days from receipt of
the order under section 4123.522 of the Revised Code to file a
notice of appeal under this section.
(B) The notice of appeal shall state the names of the
administrator of workers' compensation, the claimant, and the
employer,; the number of the claim,; the date of the order
appealed from,; and the fact that the appellant appeals therefrom.
The administrator of workers' compensation, the claimant, and
the employer shall be parties to the appeal and the court, upon
the application of the commission, shall make the commission a
party. The party filing the appeal shall serve a copy of the
notice of appeal on the administrator at the central office of the
bureau of workers' compensation in Columbus. The administrator
shall notify the employer that if the employer fails to become an
active party to the appeal, then the administrator may act on
behalf of the employer and the results of the appeal could have an
adverse effect upon the employer's premium rates.
(C) The attorney general or one or more of the attorney
general's assistants or special counsel designated by the attorney
general shall represent the administrator and the commission. In
the event the attorney general or the attorney general's
designated assistants or special counsel are absent, the
administrator or the commission shall select one or more of the
attorneys in the employ of the administrator or the commission as
the administrator's attorney or the commission's attorney in the
appeal. Any attorney so employed shall continue the representation
during the entire period of the appeal and in all hearings thereof
except where the continued representation becomes impractical.
(D) Upon receipt of notice of appeal, the clerk of courts
shall provide notice to all parties who are appellees and to the
commission.
The claimant shall, within thirty days after the filing of
the notice of appeal, file a petition containing a statement of
facts in ordinary and concise language showing a cause of action
to participate or to continue to participate in the fund and
setting forth the basis for the jurisdiction of the court over the
action. Further pleadings shall be had in accordance with the
Rules of Civil Procedure, provided that service of summons on such
petition shall not be required and provided that the claimant may
not dismiss the complaint without the employer's consent if the
employer is the party that filed the notice of appeal to court
pursuant to this section. The clerk of the court shall, upon
receipt thereof, transmit by certified mail a copy thereof to each
party named in the notice of appeal other than the claimant. Any
party may file with the clerk prior to the trial of the action a
deposition of any physician taken in accordance with the
provisions of the Revised Code, which deposition may be read in
the trial of the action even though the physician is a resident of
or subject to service in the county in which the trial is had. The
bureau of workers' compensation shall pay the cost of the
stenographic deposition filed in court and of copies of the
stenographic deposition for each party from the surplus fund and
charge the costs thereof against the unsuccessful party if the
claimant's right to participate or continue to participate is
finally sustained or established in the appeal. In the event the
deposition is taken and filed, the physician whose deposition is
taken is not required to respond to any subpoena issued in the
trial of the action. The court, or the jury under the instructions
of the court, if a jury is demanded, shall determine the right of
the claimant to participate or to continue to participate in the
fund upon the evidence adduced at the hearing of the action.
(E) The court shall certify its decision to the commission
and the certificate shall be entered in the records of the court.
Appeals from the judgment are governed by the law applicable to
the appeal of civil actions.
(F) The cost of any legal proceedings authorized by this
section, including an attorney's fee to the claimant's attorney to
be fixed by the trial judge, based upon the effort expended, in
the event the claimant's right to participate or to continue to
participate in the fund is established upon the final
determination of an appeal, shall be taxed against the employer or
the commission if the commission or the administrator rather than
the employer contested the right of the claimant to participate in
the fund. The attorney's fee shall not exceed forty-two hundred
dollars.
(G) If the finding of the court or the verdict of the jury is
in favor of the claimant's right to participate in the fund, the
commission and the administrator shall thereafter proceed in the
matter of the claim as if the judgment were the decision of the
commission, subject to the power of modification provided by
section 4123.52 of the Revised Code.
(H)(1) An appeal from an order issued under division (E) of
section 4123.511 of the Revised Code or any action filed in court
in a case in which an award of compensation or medical benefits
has been made shall not stay the payment of compensation or
medical benefits under the award, or payment for subsequent
periods of total disability or medical benefits during the
pendency of the appeal. If, in a final administrative or judicial
action, it is determined that payments of compensation or
benefits, or both, made to or on behalf of a claimant should not
have been made, the amount thereof shall be charged to the surplus
fund account under division (B) of section 4123.34 of the Revised
Code. In the event the employer is a state risk, the amount shall
not be charged to the employer's experience, and the administrator
shall adjust the employer's account accordingly. In the event the
employer is a self-insuring employer, the self-insuring employer
shall deduct the amount from the paid compensation the
self-insuring employer reports to the administrator under division
(L) of section 4123.35 of the Revised Code. If an employer is a
state risk and has paid an assessment for a violation of a
specific safety requirement, and, in a final administrative or
judicial action, it is determined that the employer did not
violate the specific safety requirement, the administrator shall
reimburse the employer from the surplus fund account created in
division (B) of section 4123.34 of the Revised Code for the amount
of the assessment the employer paid for the violation.
(2)(a) Notwithstanding a final determination that payments of
benefits made to or on behalf of a claimant should not have been
made, the administrator or self-insuring employer shall award
payment of medical or vocational rehabilitation services submitted
for payment after the date of the final determination if all of
the following apply:
(i) The services were approved and were rendered by the
provider in good faith prior to the date of the final
determination.
(ii) The services were payable under division (I) of section
4123.511 of the Revised Code prior to the date of the final
determination.
(iii) The request for payment is submitted within the time
limit set forth in section 4123.52 of the Revised Code.
(b) Payments made under division (H)(1) of this section shall
be charged to the surplus fund account under division (B) of
section 4123.34 of the Revised Code. If the employer of the
employee who is the subject of a claim described in division
(H)(2)(a) of this section is a state fund employer, the payments
made under that division shall not be charged to the employer's
experience. If that employer is a self-insuring employer, the
self-insuring employer shall deduct the amount from the paid
compensation the self-insuring employer reports to the
administrator under division (L) of section 4123.35 of the Revised
Code.
(c) Division (H)(2) of this section shall apply only to a
claim under this chapter or Chapter 4121., 4127., or 4131. of the
Revised Code arising on or after the effective date of this
amendment July 29, 2011.
(3) A self-insuring employer may elect to pay compensation
and benefits under this section directly to an employee or an
employee's dependents by filing an application with the bureau of
workers' compensation not more than one hundred eighty days and
not less than ninety days before the first day of the employer's
next six-month coverage period. If the self-insuring employer
timely files the application, the application is effective on the
first day of the employer's next six-month coverage period,
provided that the administrator shall compute the employer's
assessment for the surplus fund account due with respect to the
period during which that application was filed without regard to
the filing of the application. On and after the effective date of
the employer's election, the self-insuring employer shall pay
directly to an employee or to an employee's dependents
compensation and benefits under this section regardless of the
date of the injury or occupational disease, and the employer shall
receive no money or credits from the surplus fund account on
account of those payments and shall not be required to pay any
amounts into the surplus fund account on account of this section.
The election made under this division is irrevocable.
(I) All actions and proceedings under this section which are
the subject of an appeal to the court of common pleas or the court
of appeals shall be preferred over all other civil actions except
election causes, irrespective of position on the calendar.
This section applies to all decisions of the commission or
the administrator on November 2, 1959, and all claims filed
thereafter are governed by sections 4123.511 and 4123.512 of the
Revised Code.
Any action pending in common pleas court or any other court
on January 1, 1986, under this section is governed by former
sections 4123.514, 4123.515, 4123.516, and 4123.519 and section
4123.522 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 4123.66. (A) In addition to the compensation provided
for in this chapter, the administrator of workers' compensation
shall disburse and pay from the state insurance fund the amounts
for medical, nurse, and hospital services and medicine as the
administrator deems proper and, in case death ensues from the
injury or occupational disease, the administrator shall disburse
and pay from the fund reasonable funeral expenses in an amount not
to exceed fifty-five hundred dollars. The bureau of workers'
compensation shall reimburse anyone, whether dependent, volunteer,
or otherwise, who pays the funeral expenses of any employee whose
death ensues from any injury or occupational disease as provided
in this section. The administrator may adopt rules, with the
advice and consent of the bureau of workers' compensation board of
directors, with respect to furnishing medical, nurse, and hospital
service and medicine to injured or disabled employees entitled
thereto, and for the payment therefor. In case an injury or
industrial accident that injures an employee also causes damage to
the employee's eyeglasses, artificial teeth or other denture, or
hearing aid, or in the event an injury or occupational disease
makes it necessary or advisable to replace, repair, or adjust the
same, the bureau shall disburse and pay a reasonable amount to
repair or replace the same.
(B) The administrator, in the rules the administrator adopts
pursuant to division (A) of this section, may adopt rules
specifying the circumstances under which the bureau may make
immediate payment for the first fill of prescription drugs for
medical conditions identified in an application for compensation
or benefits under section 4123.84 or 4123.85 of the Revised Code
that occurs prior to the date the administrator issues an initial
determination order under division (B) of section 4123.511 of the
Revised Code. If the claim is ultimately disallowed in a final
administrative or judicial order, and if the employer is a state
fund employer who pays assessments into the surplus fund account
created under section 4123.34 of the Revised Code, the payments
for medical services made pursuant to this division for the first
fill of prescription drugs shall be charged to and paid from the
surplus fund account and not charged through the state insurance
fund to the employer against whom the claim was filed.
(C) The administrator, in the rules the administrator adopts
pursuant to division (A) of this section, may identify specified
medical services that are presumptively authorized and payable to
a provider who provides any of the services identified in, and
complies with the requirements set forth in, the rules the
administrator adopts for the services rendered. The administrator,
in the rules the administrator adopts under this division, shall
limit the payment for these services to only those services
rendered to a claimant during the time period beginning the date
the administrator issues an order pursuant to division (B) of
section 4123.511 of the Revised Code allowing a claim or allowing
an additional condition to which the services relate and ending
forty-five days after the date the order was issued.
If the claim or additional condition is ultimately disallowed
in a final administrative or judicial order, and if the employer
is a state fund employer who pays assessments into the surplus
fund account created under section 4123.34 of the Revised Code,
the payments for medical services made pursuant to this division
for that claim or condition shall be charged to and paid from the
surplus fund account and not charged through the state insurance
fund to the employer against whom the claim or additional
condition was filed.
(D)(1) If an employer or a welfare plan has provided to or on
behalf of an employee any benefits or compensation for an injury
or occupational disease and that injury or occupational disease is
determined compensable under this chapter, the employer or a
welfare plan may request that the administrator reimburse the
employer or welfare plan for the amount the employer or welfare
plan paid to or on behalf of the employee in compensation or
benefits. The administrator shall reimburse the employer or
welfare plan for the compensation and benefits paid if, at the
time the employer or welfare plan provides the benefits or
compensation to or on behalf of employee, the injury or
occupational disease had not been determined to be compensable
under this chapter and if the employee was not receiving
compensation or benefits under this chapter for that injury or
occupational disease. The administrator shall reimburse the
employer or welfare plan in the amount that the administrator
would have paid to or on behalf of the employee under this chapter
if the injury or occupational disease originally would have been
determined compensable under this chapter. If the employer is a
merit-rated employer, the administrator shall adjust the amount of
premium next due from the employer according to the amount the
administrator pays the employer. The administrator shall adopt
rules, in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, to
implement this division.
(2) As used in this division, "welfare plan" has the same
meaning as in division (1) of 29 U.S.C.A. 1002.
Sec. 4123.82. (A) All contracts and agreements are void
which undertake to indemnify or insure an employer against loss or
liability for the payment of compensation to workers or their
dependents for death, injury, or occupational disease occasioned
in the course of the workers' employment, or which provide that
the insurer shall pay the compensation, or which indemnify the
employer against damages when the injury, disease, or death arises
from the failure to comply with any lawful requirement for the
protection of the lives, health, and safety of employees, or when
the same is occasioned by the willful act of the employer or any
of the employer's officers or agents, or by which it is agreed
that the insurer shall pay any such damages. No license or
authority to enter into any such agreements or issue any such
policies of insurance shall be granted or issued by any public
authority in this state. Any corporation organized or admitted
under the laws of this state to transact liability insurance as
defined in section 3929.01 of the Revised Code may by amendment of
its articles of incorporation or by original articles of
incorporation, provide therein for the authority and purpose to
make insurance in states, territories, districts, and counties,
other than the state of Ohio, and in the state of Ohio in respect
of contracts permitted by division (B) of this section,
indemnifying employers against loss or liability for payment of
compensation to workers and employees and their dependents for
death, injury, or occupational disease occasioned in the course of
the employment and to insure and indemnify employers against loss,
expense, and liability by risk of bodily injury or death by
accident, disability, sickness, or disease suffered by workers and
employees for which the employer may be liable or has assumed
liability.
(B) Notwithstanding division (A) of this section:
(1) No contract because of that division is void which
undertakes to indemnify a self-insuring employer against all or
part of such employer's loss in excess of at least fifty three
hundred thousand dollars from any one disaster or event arising
out of the employer's liability under this chapter, but no
insurance corporation shall, directly or indirectly, represent an
employer in the settlement, adjudication, determination,
allowance, or payment of claims. The superintendent of insurance
shall enforce this prohibition by such disciplinary orders
directed against the offending insurance corporation as the
superintendent of insurance deems appropriate in the circumstances
and the administrator of workers' compensation shall enforce this
prohibition by such disciplinary orders directed against the
offending employer as the administrator deems appropriate in the
circumstances, which orders may include revocation of the
insurance corporation's right to enter into indemnity contracts
and revocation of the employer's status as a self-insuring
employer.
(2) The administrator may enter into a contract of indemnity
with any such employer upon such terms, payment of such premium,
and for such amount and form of indemnity as the administrator
determines and the bureau of workers' compensation board of
directors may procure reinsurance of the liability of the public
and private funds under this chapter, or any part of the liability
in respect of either or both of the funds, upon such terms and
premiums or other payments from the fund or funds as the
administrator deems prudent in the maintenance of a solvent fund
or funds from year to year. When making the finding of fact which
the administrator is required by section 4123.35 of the Revised
Code to make with respect to the financial ability of an employer,
no contract of indemnity, or the ability of the employer to
procure such a contract, shall be considered as increasing the
financial ability of the employer.
(C) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit
the administrator or an other-states' insurer from providing to
employers in this state other-states' coverage in accordance with
section 4123.292 of the Revised Code.
(D) Notwithstanding any other section of the Revised Code,
but subject to division (A) of this section, the superintendent of
insurance shall have the sole authority to regulate any insurance
products, except for the bureau of workers' compensation and those
products offered by the bureau, that indemnify or insure employers
against workers' compensation losses in this state or that are
sold to employers in this state.
Sec. 4123.93. As used in sections 4123.93 and 4123.931 of
the Revised Code:
(A) "Claimant" means a person who is eligible to receive
compensation, medical benefits, or death benefits under this
chapter or Chapter 4121., 4127., or 4131. of the Revised Code.
(B) "Statutory subrogee" means the administrator of workers'
compensation, a self-insuring employer, or an employer that
contracts for the direct payment of medical services pursuant to
division (L)(M) of section 4121.44 of the Revised Code.
(C) "Third party" means an individual, private insurer,
public or private entity, or public or private program that is or
may be liable to make payments to a person without regard to any
statutory duty contained in this chapter or Chapter 4121., 4127.,
or 4131. of the Revised Code.
(D) "Subrogation interest" includes past, present, and
estimated future payments of compensation, medical benefits,
rehabilitation costs, or death benefits, and any other costs or
expenses paid to or on behalf of the claimant by the statutory
subrogee pursuant to this chapter or Chapter 4121., 4127., or
4131. of the Revised Code.
(E) "Net amount recovered" means the amount of any award,
settlement, compromise, or recovery by a claimant against a third
party, minus the attorney's fees, costs, or other expenses
incurred by the claimant in securing the award, settlement,
compromise, or recovery. "Net amount recovered" does not include
any punitive damages that may be awarded by a judge or jury.
(F) "Uncompensated damages" means the claimant's demonstrated
or proven damages minus the statutory subrogee's subrogation
interest.
Sec. 4729.80. (A) If the state board of pharmacy establishes
and maintains a drug database pursuant to section 4729.75 of the
Revised Code, the board is authorized or required to provide
information from the database in accordance with the following:
(1) On receipt of a request from a designated representative
of a government entity responsible for the licensure, regulation,
or discipline of health care professionals with authority to
prescribe, administer, or dispense drugs, the board may provide to
the representative information from the database relating to the
professional who is the subject of an active investigation being
conducted by the government entity.
(2) On receipt of a request from a federal officer, or a
state or local officer of this or any other state, whose duties
include enforcing laws relating to drugs, the board shall provide
to the officer information from the database relating to the
person who is the subject of an active investigation of a drug
abuse offense, as defined in section 2925.01 of the Revised Code,
being conducted by the officer's employing government entity.
(3) Pursuant to a subpoena issued by a grand jury, the board
shall provide to the grand jury information from the database
relating to the person who is the subject of an investigation
being conducted by the grand jury.
(4) Pursuant to a subpoena, search warrant, or court order in
connection with the investigation or prosecution of a possible or
alleged criminal offense, the board shall provide information from
the database as necessary to comply with the subpoena, search
warrant, or court order.
(5) On receipt of a request from a prescriber or the
prescriber's delegate approved by the board, the board may provide
to the prescriber information from the database relating to a
patient who is either of the following, if the prescriber
certifies in a form specified by the board that it is for the
purpose of providing medical treatment to the patient who is the
subject of the request;
(a) A current patient of the prescriber;
(b) A potential patient of the prescriber based on a referral
of the patient to the prescriber.
(6) On receipt of a request from a pharmacist or the
pharmacist's delegate approved by the board, the board may provide
to the pharmacist information from the database relating to a
current patient of the pharmacist, if the pharmacist certifies in
a form specified by the board that it is for the purpose of the
pharmacist's practice of pharmacy involving the patient who is the
subject of the request.
(7) On receipt of a request from an individual seeking the
individual's own database information in accordance with the
procedure established in rules adopted under section 4729.84 of
the Revised Code, the board may provide to the individual the
individual's own database information.
(8) On receipt of a request from the medical director of a
managed care organization that has entered into a data security
agreement with the board required by section 5111.1710 of the
Revised Code, the board may provide to the medical director
information from the database relating to a medicaid recipient
enrolled in the managed care organization.
(9) On receipt of a request from the director of job and
family services, the board may provide to the director information
from the database relating to a recipient of a program
administered by the department of job and family services.
(10) On receipt of a request from the administrator of
workers' compensation, the board may shall provide to the
administrator information from the database relating to a claimant
under Chapter 4121., 4123., 4127., or 4131. of the Revised Code.
(11) On receipt of a request from a requestor described in
division (A)(1), (2), (5), or (6) of this section who is from or
participating with another state's prescription monitoring
program, the board may provide to the requestor information from
the database, but only if there is a written agreement under which
the information is to be used and disseminated according to the
laws of this state.
(B) The state board of pharmacy shall maintain a record of
each individual or entity that requests information from the
database pursuant to this section. In accordance with rules
adopted under section 4729.84 of the Revised Code, the board may
use the records to document and report statistics and law
enforcement outcomes.
The board may provide records of an individual's requests for
database information to the following:
(1) A designated representative of a government entity that
is responsible for the licensure, regulation, or discipline of
health care professionals with authority to prescribe, administer,
or dispense drugs who is involved in an active investigation being
conducted by the government entity of the individual who submitted
the requests for database information;
(2) A federal officer, or a state or local officer of this or
any other state, whose duties include enforcing laws relating to
drugs and who is involved in an active investigation being
conducted by the officer's employing government entity of the
individual who submitted the requests for database information.
(C) Information contained in the database and any information
obtained from it is not a public record. Information contained in
the records of requests for information from the database is not a
public record. Information that does not identify a person may be
released in summary, statistical, or aggregate form.
(D) A pharmacist or prescriber shall not be held liable in
damages to any person in any civil action for injury, death, or
loss to person or property on the basis that the pharmacist or
prescriber did or did not seek or obtain information from the
database.
Section 102. That existing sections 4121.129, 4121.44,
4121.441, 4123.29, 4123.291, 4123.353, 4123.37, 4123.411, 4123.47,
4123.511, 4123.512, 4123.66, 4123.82, 4123.93, and 4729.80 of the
Revised Code are hereby repealed.
Section 201. All items in are hereby appropriated out of any
moneys in the state treasury to the credit of the designated fund.
For all appropriations made in this act, those in the first column
are for fiscal year 2014, and those in the second column are for
fiscal year 2015.
FND |
AI |
|
AI TITLE |
|
|
|
Appropriations
| |
|
BWC BUREAU OF WORKERS' COMPENSATION
Workers' Compensation Fund Group
7023 |
855401 |
|
William Green Lease Payments to OBA |
|
$ |
16,026,100 |
|
$ |
0 |
|
|
7023 |
855407 |
|
Claims, Risk and Medical Management |
|
$ |
118,338,586 |
|
$ |
118,338,586 |
|
|
7023 |
855408 |
|
Fraud Prevention |
|
$ |
12,114,226 |
|
$ |
12,114,226 |
|
|
7023 |
855409 |
|
Administrative Services |
|
$ |
105,857,276 |
|
$ |
105,357,276 |
|
|
7023 |
855410 |
|
Attorney General Payments |
|
$ |
4,621,850 |
|
$ |
4,621,850 |
|
|
8220 |
855606 |
|
Coal Workers' Fund |
|
$ |
147,666 |
|
$ |
147,666 |
|
|
8230 |
855608 |
|
Marine Industry |
|
$ |
75,527 |
|
$ |
75,527 |
|
|
8250 |
855605 |
|
Disabled Workers Relief Fund |
|
$ |
319,718 |
|
$ |
319,718 |
|
|
8260 |
855609 |
|
Safety and Hygiene Operating |
|
$ |
19,161,132 |
|
$ |
19,161,132 |
|
|
8260 |
855610 |
|
Gear Program |
|
$ |
5,000,000 |
|
$ |
5,000,000 |
|
|
8290 |
855604 |
|
Long Term Care Loan Program |
|
$ |
100,000 |
|
$ |
100,000 |
|
|
TOTAL WCF Workers' Compensation
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Fund Group
| |
$ |
281,762,081 |
|
$ |
265,235,981 |
|
|
Federal Special Revenue Fund Group
3490 |
855601 |
|
OSHA Enforcement |
|
$ |
1,731,000 |
|
$ |
1,731,000 |
|
|
3FW0 |
855614 |
|
BLS SOII Grant |
|
$ |
116,919 |
|
$ |
116,919 |
|
|
TOTAL FED Federal Special Revenue Fund Group
| |
$ |
1,847,919 |
|
$ |
1,847,919 |
|
|
TOTAL ALL BUDGET FUND GROUPS
| |
$ |
283,610,000 |
|
$ |
267,083,900 |
|
|
WILLIAM GREEN LEASE PAYMENTS
Of the foregoing appropriation item 855401, William Green
Lease Payments, up to $16,026,100 shall be used to make lease
payments to the Treasurer of State at the times they are required
to be made during the period from July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2015,
pursuant to leases and agreements made under section 154.24 of the
Revised Code. If it is determined that additional appropriations
are necessary for such purpose, such amounts are hereby
appropriated.
WORKERS' COMPENSATION FRAUD UNIT
Of the foregoing appropriation item 855410, Attorney General
Payments, $828,200 in each fiscal year shall be used to fund the
expenses of the Workers' Compensation Fraud Unit within the
Attorney General's Office. These payments shall be processed at
the beginning of each quarter of each fiscal year and deposited
into the Workers' Compensation Section Fund (Fund 1950) used by
the Attorney General.
Notwithstanding section 4121.37 of the Revised Code, the
Treasurer of State shall transfer $20,382,567 cash in fiscal year
2014 and $20,161,132 cash in fiscal year 2015 from the State
Insurance Fund to the Safety and Hygiene Fund (Fund 8260).
OSHA ON-SITE CONSULTATION PROGRAM
The Bureau of Workers' Compensation may designate a portion
of appropriation item 855609, Safety and Hygiene Operating, to be
used to match federal funding for the federal Occupational Safety
and Health Administration's (OSHA) on-site consultation program.
VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION
The Bureau of Workers' Compensation and the Rehabilitation
Services Commission shall enter into an interagency agreement for
the provision of vocational rehabilitation services and staff to
mutually eligible clients. The bureau shall provide $605,407 in
fiscal year 2014 and $605,407 in fiscal year 2015 from the State
Insurance Fund to fund vocational rehabilitation services and
staff in accordance with the interagency agreement.
Any unencumbered cash balance in excess of $45,000,000 in the
Workers' Compensation Fund (Fund 7023) on the thirtieth day of
June of each fiscal year shall be used to reduce the
administrative cost rate charged to employers to cover
appropriations for Bureau of Workers' Compensation operations.
Section 211. DEPUTY INSPECTOR GENERAL FOR BWC AND OIC FUNDING
To pay for the FY 2014 costs related to the Deputy Inspector
General for the Bureau of Workers' Compensation and Industrial
Commission, on July 1, 2013, and on January 1, 2014, or as soon as
possible after each date, the Director of Budget and Management
shall transfer $212,500 in cash from the Workers' Compensation
Fund (Fund 7023) to the Deputy Inspector General for the Bureau of
Workers' Compensation and Industrial Commission Fund (Fund 5FT0).
To pay for the FY 2015 costs related to the Deputy Inspector
General for the Bureau of Workers' Compensation and Industrial
Commission, on July 1, 2014, and on January 1, 2015, or as soon as
possible after each date, the Director of Budget and Management
shall transfer $212,500 in cash from the Workers' Compensation
Fund (Fund 7023) to the Deputy Inspector General for the Bureau of
Workers' Compensation and Industrial Commission Fund (Fund 5FT0).
If additional amounts are needed, the Inspector General may
seek Controlling Board approval for additional transfers of cash
and to increase the amount appropriated in appropriation item
965604, Deputy Inspector General for the Bureau of Workers'
Compensation and Industrial Commission.
Section 741.10. Except as otherwise provided in this act,
the amendments to Revised Code sections in Section 101 of this act
apply to all claims filed pursuant to Chapter 4121., 4123., 4127.,
or 4131. of the Revised Code on or after the effective date of
Section 101 of this act.
Section 741.20. Division (B) of section 4123.512 of the
Revised Code, as amended by this act, applies to an appeal filed
pursuant to that section on or after the effective date of that
section.
Section 803.10. Law contained in the Main Operating
Appropriations Act of the 130th General Assembly that applies
generally to the appropriations made in that act also applies
generally to the appropriations made in this act.
Section 806.10. The provisions of law contained in this act,
and their applications, are severable. If any provision of law
contained in this act, or if any application of any provision of
law contained in this act, is held invalid, the invalidity does
not affect other provisions of law contained in this act and their
applications that can be given effect without the invalid
provision or application.
Section 812.10. Except as otherwise specifically provided in
this act, the amendment, enactment, or repeal by this act of a
section of law is exempt from the referendum under Ohio
Constitution, Article II, Section 1d and section 1.471 of the
Revised Code and therefore takes effect immediately when this act
becomes law.
Section 812.20. The amendment, enactment, or repeal by this
act of the divisions and sections of law listed below are subject
to the referendum under Ohio Constitution, Article II, Section 1c
and therefore take effect on the ninety-first day after this act
is filed with the Secretary of State.
All Revised Code sections in Section 101 of this act.
Sections 741.10 and 741.20 of this act.
|