| 1 | 1 | | 85R959 JSC-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Whitmire S.B. No. 1722 |
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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 the eligibility of a firefighter or a peace officer for |
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| 8 | 8 | | workers' compensation benefits for post-traumatic stress disorder. |
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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 504, Labor Code, is |
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| 11 | 11 | | amended by adding Section 504.019 to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | Sec. 504.019. COVERAGE FOR POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER |
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| 13 | 13 | | FOR CERTAIN FIREFIGHTERS AND PEACE OFFICERS. (a) In this section: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (1) "Firefighter" means an individual employed by a |
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| 15 | 15 | | political subdivision of this state who is a firefighter subject |
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| 16 | 16 | | to certification by the Texas Commission on Fire Protection under |
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| 17 | 17 | | Chapter 419, Government Code, whose principal duties are |
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| 18 | 18 | | firefighting and aircraft crash and rescue. |
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| 19 | 19 | | (2) "Peace officer" means a person elected, employed, |
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| 20 | 20 | | or appointed as a peace officer under Article 2.12, Code of Criminal |
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| 21 | 21 | | Procedure, or other law. |
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| 22 | 22 | | (3) "Post-traumatic stress disorder" means a disorder |
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| 23 | 23 | | that: |
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| 24 | 24 | | (A) meets the diagnostic criteria for |
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| 25 | 25 | | post-traumatic stress disorder specified by the American |
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| 26 | 26 | | Psychiatric Association in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of |
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| 27 | 27 | | Mental Disorders, fifth edition, or a later edition adopted by the |
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| 28 | 28 | | commissioner of workers' compensation; and |
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| 29 | 29 | | (B) results in an impairment of a person's |
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| 30 | 30 | | functioning in the person's community, employment, family, school, |
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| 31 | 31 | | or social group. |
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| 32 | 32 | | (b) Post-traumatic stress disorder suffered by a |
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| 33 | 33 | | firefighter or peace officer is a compensable injury under this |
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| 34 | 34 | | subtitle only if: |
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| 35 | 35 | | (1) the disorder is caused by events occurring in the |
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| 36 | 36 | | course and scope of the firefighter's or peace officer's |
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| 37 | 37 | | employment; and |
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| 38 | 38 | | (2) the preponderance of the evidence indicates that |
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| 39 | 39 | | the firefighter's or peace officer's work was a substantial |
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| 40 | 40 | | contributing factor of the disorder. |
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| 41 | 41 | | SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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| 42 | 42 | | to a claim for workers' compensation benefits based on a |
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| 43 | 43 | | compensable injury that occurs on or after the effective date of |
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| 44 | 44 | | this Act. A claim based on a compensable injury that occurs before |
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| 45 | 45 | | that date is governed by the law as it existed on the date the |
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| 46 | 46 | | compensable injury occurred, and the former law is continued in |
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| 47 | 47 | | effect for that purpose. |
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| 48 | 48 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |
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