| 1 | 1 | | 88R6117 KKR-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Collier H.B. No. 1839 |
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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, if any, between a compensable injury and the diagnoses |
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| 16 | 16 | | or conditions specified in the insurance carrier's plain language |
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| 17 | 17 | | notice disputing the extent of the injured employee's compensable |
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| 18 | 18 | | injury. |
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| 19 | 19 | | (b) On receipt of a plain language notice from the insurance |
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| 20 | 20 | | carrier disputing the extent of an injured employee's compensable |
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| 21 | 21 | | injury, if the employee does not agree with the statements in the |
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| 22 | 22 | | plain language notice, the injured employee may request a medical |
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| 23 | 23 | | causation narrative report addressing the extent of the employee's |
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| 24 | 24 | | compensable injury from: |
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| 25 | 25 | | (1) the treating doctor; or |
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| 26 | 26 | | (2) a doctor to whom the treating doctor has |
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| 27 | 27 | | previously referred the injured employee and who has treated the |
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| 28 | 28 | | injured employee. |
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| 29 | 29 | | (c) An insurance carrier is required to provide |
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| 30 | 30 | | reimbursement for one medical causation narrative report for each |
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| 31 | 31 | | plain language notice disputing the extent of the injured |
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| 32 | 32 | | employee's compensable injury. |
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| 33 | 33 | | (d) The commissioner shall adopt rules implementing this |
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| 34 | 34 | | section to ensure the efficient use of medical causation narrative |
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| 35 | 35 | | reports and resolution of disputes regarding the extent of an |
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| 36 | 36 | | injured employee's compensable injury. |
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| 37 | 37 | | SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies to a |
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| 38 | 38 | | medical causation narrative report requested in response to a plain |
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| 39 | 39 | | language notice disputing the extent of the injured employee's |
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| 40 | 40 | | compensable injury that is issued on or after the effective date of |
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| 41 | 41 | | this Act, regardless of whether the compensable injury occurred |
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| 42 | 42 | | before, on, or after that date. |
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| 43 | 43 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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