H.B. No. 2547
AN ACT
relating to the use of a description of employment in determining
the safety and appropriateness of a return to employment by an
injured employee.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 408, Labor Code, is
amended by adding Section 408.0221 to read as follows:
Sec. 408.0221. REQUEST FOR DESCRIPTION OF EMPLOYMENT. (a)
This section applies only to an employee of an employer who has 10
or more employees.
(b) To facilitate an injured employee's return to
employment as soon as it is considered safe and appropriate by the
injured employee's treating doctor, the treating doctor may request
that the injured employee's employer provide the treating doctor
with the information described by Subsection (d) on the form
adopted under that subsection.
(c) Information provided to a treating doctor under
Subsection (b) does not constitute:
(1) a request by the employer that the injured
employee return to the employment;
(2) an offer of employment by the employer for the
injured employee to return to employment; or
(3) an admission of the compensability of the injury
of the employee.
(d) The commissioner shall prescribe a form to provide
information from an employer to a treating doctor concerning the
functions and physical responsibilities of an injured employee's
job. To the extent possible, the form prescribed under this
subsection shall be one page, use a check box format as appropriate,
and be compatible with electronic mail. The form must include:
(1) the name and address of the employer and the
contact information and availability of the individual
representing the employer who has knowledge of the injured
employee's job;
(2) the scope of the injured employee's employment,
including any specific tasks, job duties, or work activities that
the injured employee was required to perform at the time the
employee sustained the injury; and
(3) an area for additional comments or information by
the employer or individual representing the employer concerning:
(A) the injured employee's job; or
(B) the availability, if any, of other jobs that
the employer may have that the employer would like the treating
doctor to consider in determining whether an injured employee is
able to return to work.
(e) The commissioner may adopt rules as necessary to
implement this section and to facilitate communication between the
employer and the treating doctor regarding return-to-work
opportunities.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2547 was passed by the House on May 7,
2009, by the following vote: Yeas 146, Nays 0, 1 present, not
voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2547 was passed by the Senate on May
26, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: _____________________
Date
_____________________
Governor