| 1 | 1 | | 85R10733 JSC-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Perry S.B. No. 1035 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to medical causation narrative reports created under the |
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| 8 | 8 | | Texas Workers' Compensation Act. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 408, Labor Code, is |
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| 11 | 11 | | amended by adding Section 408.0273 to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | Sec. 408.0273. MEDICAL CAUSATION NARRATIVE REPORT. (a) In |
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| 13 | 13 | | this section, "medical causation narrative report" means an |
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| 14 | 14 | | original report created by a doctor that explains a causal |
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| 15 | 15 | | connection between a workplace accident and a diagnosed injury. |
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| 16 | 16 | | (b) If an insurance carrier disputes the extent of an |
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| 17 | 17 | | employee's compensable injury or if an injured employee does not |
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| 18 | 18 | | agree with the opinion of a designated doctor under Section |
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| 19 | 19 | | 408.0041 on that issue, the insurance carrier shall reimburse the |
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| 20 | 20 | | treating doctor or doctor to whom the injured employee is referred |
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| 21 | 21 | | by the treating doctor for the creation of a medical causation |
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| 22 | 22 | | narrative report addressing that issue, regardless of whether the |
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| 23 | 23 | | injured employee, a representative of the injured employee, or the |
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| 24 | 24 | | insurance carrier requests the creation of the report. |
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| 25 | 25 | | SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies to a |
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| 26 | 26 | | medical causation narrative report requested on or after the |
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| 27 | 27 | | effective date of this Act, regardless of whether the compensable |
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| 28 | 28 | | injury occurred before, on, or after that date. |
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| 29 | 29 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 30 | 30 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 31 | 31 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 32 | 32 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 33 | 33 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |
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