Connecticut 2025 Regular Session

Connecticut House Bill HB06954 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1
2	2
3		-	LCO 4101 1 of 5
	3	+	LCO No. 4101 1 of 6
4	4
5	5		General Assembly Raised Bill No. 6954
6	6		January Session, 2025
7	7		LCO No. 4101
8	8
9	9
10		-	Referred to Committee on LABOR AND PUBLIC
11		-	EMPLOYEES
	10	+	Referred to Committee on LABOR AND PUBLIC EMPLOYEES
12	11
13	12
14	13		Introduced by:
15	14		(LAB)
	15	+
16	16
17	17
18	18
19	19		AN ACT ADDING WITNESSING A SERIOUS PHYSICAL INJURY AS A
20	20		QUALIFYING EVENT FOR PURPOSES OF POST -TRAUMATIC
21	21		STRESS INJURY WORKERS' COMPENSATION COVERAGE.
22	22		Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
23	23		Assembly convened:
24	24
25	25		Section 1. Subsection (a) of section 31-294k of the general statutes is 1
26	26		repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 2
27	27		1, 2025): 3
28	28		(a) As used in this section: 4
29	29		(1) "COVID-19" means the respiratory disease designated by the 5
30	30		World Health Organization on February 11, 2020, as coronavirus 2019, 6
31	31		and any related mutation thereof recognized by the World Health 7
32	32		Organization as a communicable respiratory disease; 8
33	33		(2) "Eligible individual" means a police officer, firefighter, emergency 9
34	34		medical services personnel, Department of Correction employee, 10
35	35		telecommunicator or health care provider, and on and after January 1, 11
36		-	2024, an employee; 12 Raised Bill No. 6954
	36	+	2024, an employee; 12
	37	+	Raised Bill No. 6954
37	38
38	39
39		-	LCO 4101 2 of 5
	40	+
	41	+	LCO No. 4101 2 of 6
40	42
41	43		(3) "Emergency medical services personnel" has the same meaning as 13
42	44		provided in section 20-206jj; 14
43	45		(4) "Employee" has the same meaning as provided in section 31-275; 15
44	46		(5) "Firefighter" has the same meaning as provided in section 7-313g; 16
45	47		(6) "Health care provider" means (A) a person employed at a doctor's 17
46	48		office, hospital, health care center, clinic, medical school, local health 18
47	49		department or agency, nursing facility, retirement facility, nursing 19
48	50		home, group home, home health care provider, any facility that 20
49	51		performs laboratory or medical testing, pharmacy or any similar 21
50	52		institution, or (B) a person employed to provide personal care 22
51	53		assistance, as defined in section 17b-706, in or about a private dwelling, 23
52	54		provided such person is regularly employed by the owner or occupier 24
53	55		of the dwelling for more than twenty-six hours per week; 25
54	56		(7) "In the line of duty" means any action that an eligible individual 26
55	57		is obligated or authorized by law, rule, regulation or written condition 27
56	58		of employment service to perform, or for which the eligible individual 28
57	59		is compensated by the public entity such individual serves, except that, 29
58	60		in the case of a volunteer firefighter, such action or service constitutes 30
59	61		fire duties, as defined in subsection (b) of section 7-314b; 31
60	62		(8) "Mental health professional" means a board-certified psychiatrist 32
61	63		or a psychologist licensed pursuant to chapter 383, who has experience 33
62	64		diagnosing and treating post-traumatic stress injury; 34
63	65		(9) "Parole officer" means an employee of the Department of 35
64	66		Correction who supervises inmates in the community after their release 36
65	67		from prison on parole or under another prison release program; 37
66	68		(10) "Police officer" has the same meaning as provided in section 7-38
67	69		294a, except that "police officer" does not include an officer of a law 39
68	70		enforcement unit of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe or the Mohegan 40
69	71		Tribe of Indians of Connecticut; 41
70		-	~~(11) "Post-traumatic stress injury" means an injury that meets the 42~~ Raised Bill No. 6954
	72	+	Raised Bill No. 6954
71	73
72	74
73		-	LCO 4101 3 of 5
74	75
	76	+	LCO No. 4101 3 of 6
	77	+
	78	+	(11) "Post-traumatic stress injury" means an injury that meets the 42
75	79		diagnostic criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder as specified in the 43
76	80		most recent edition of the American Psychiatric Association's 44
77	81		"Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders"; 45
78	82		(12) "Qualifying event" means: 46
79	83		(A) An event occurring in the line of duty on or after July 1, 2019, in 47
80	84		which a police officer, parole officer, firefighter, emergency medical 48
81	85		services personnel, Department of Correction employee or 49
82	86		telecommunicator: 50
83	87		(i) Views a deceased minor; 51
84	88		(ii) Witnesses the death of a person or an incident involving the death 52
85	89		of a person; 53
86	90		(iii) Witnesses an injury to a person who subsequently dies before or 54
87	91		upon admission at a hospital as a result of the injury and not as a result 55
88	92		of any other intervening cause; 56
89	93		(iv) Has physical contact with and treats an injured person who 57
90	94		subsequently dies before or upon admission at a hospital as a result of 58
91	95		the injury and not as a result of any other intervening cause; 59
92	96		(v) Carries an injured person who subsequently dies before or upon 60
93	97		admission at a hospital as a result of the injury and not as a result of any 61
94	98		other intervening cause; [or] 62
95	99		(vi) Witnesses a traumatic physical injury that results in the loss of a 63
96	100		vital body part or a vital body function that results in permanent 64
97	101		disfigurement of the victim; or 65
98	102		(vii) On and after October 1, 2025, witnesses a serious physical injury 66
99	103		to a person that does not result in the death of such person or the loss of 67
100	104		a vital body part or a vital body function that results in a permanent 68
101	105		disfigurement of such person; 69
102		-	~~(B) An event arising out of and in the course of employment on or 70~~ Raised Bill No. 6954
	106	+	Raised Bill No. 6954
103	107
104	108
105		-	LCO 4101 4 of 5
106	109
	110	+	LCO No. 4101 4 of 6
	111	+
	112	+	(B) An event arising out of and in the course of employment on or 70
107	113		after March 10, 2020, in which an eligible individual who is a health care 71
108	114		provider is engaged in activities substantially dedicated to mitigating or 72
109	115		responding to the public health and civil preparedness emergencies 73
110	116		declared by the Governor on March 10, 2020, or any extension of such 74
111	117		emergency declarations; and: 75
112	118		(i) Witnesses the death of a person due to COVID-19 or due to 76
113	119		symptoms that were later diagnosed as COVID-19; 77
114	120		(ii) Witnesses an injury to a person who subsequently dies as a result 78
115	121		of COVID-19 or due to symptoms that were later diagnosed as COVID-79
116	122		19; 80
117	123		(iii) Has physical contact with and treats or provides care for a person 81
118	124		who subsequently dies as a result of COVID-19 or due to symptoms that 82
119	125		were later diagnosed as COVID-19; or 83
120	126		(iv) Witnesses a traumatic physical injury that results in the loss of a 84
121	127		vital body function of a person due to COVID-19 or due to symptoms 85
122	128		that were later diagnosed as COVID-19; or 86
123	129		(C) An event arising out of and in the course of employment on and 87
124	130		after January 1, 2024, in which an employee: 88
125	131		(i) Views a deceased minor; 89
126	132		(ii) Witnesses the death of a person or an incident involving the death 90
127	133		of a person; 91
128	134		(iii) Witnesses an injury to a person who subsequently dies before or 92
129	135		upon admission at a hospital as a result of the injury and not as a result 93
130	136		of any other intervening cause; 94
131	137		(iv) Has physical contact with and treats an injured person who 95
132	138		subsequently dies before or upon admission at a hospital as a result of 96
133	139		the injury and not as a result of any other intervening cause; 97
134		-	~~(v) Carries an injured person who subsequently dies before or upon 98~~ Raised Bill No. 6954
	140	+	Raised Bill No. 6954
135	141
136	142
137		-	LCO 4101 5 of 5
138	143
	144	+	LCO No. 4101 5 of 6
	145	+
	146	+	(v) Carries an injured person who subsequently dies before or upon 98
139	147		admission at a hospital as a result of the injury and not as a result of any 99
140	148		other intervening cause; [or] 100
141	149		(vi) Witnesses a traumatic physical injury that results in the loss of a 101
142	150		vital body part or a vital body function that results in permanent 102
143	151		disfigurement of the victim; or 103
144	152		(vii) On and after October 1, 2025, witnesses a serious physical injury 104
145	153		to a person that does not result in the death of such person or the loss of 105
146	154		a vital body part or a vital body function that results in permanent 106
147	155		disfigurement of such person; 107
148	156		(13) "Serious physical injury" has the same meaning as provided in 108
149	157		section 53a-3; 109
150	158		[(13)] (14) "Telecommunicator" has the same meaning as provided in 110
151	159		section 28-30; and 111
152	160		[(14)] (15) "Witnesses" means, for an eligible individual who is a 112
153	161		telecommunicator, hears by telephone or radio while directly 113
154	162		responding to an emergency call that constitutes a qualifying event 114
155	163		under this section and providing a dispatch assignment. 115
156	164		This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
157	165		sections:
158	166
159	167		Section 1 October 1, 2025 31-294k(a)
160	168
161		-	LAB Joint Favorable
	169	+	Statement of Purpose:
	170	+	To add witnessing a serious physical injury to a person that does not
	171	+	result in the death or permanent disfigurement of such person as a
	172	+	qualifying event for an employee to be eligible for workers'
	173	+	compensation coverage for a post-traumatic stress injury.
	174	+
	175	+	Raised Bill No. 6954
	176	+
	177	+
	178	+
	179	+	LCO No. 4101 6 of 6
	180	+
	181	+	[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
	182	+	that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
	183	+	underlined.]
162	184