BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 375
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Date of Hearing: May 4, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 375 (Skinner) - As Introduced: February 14, 2011
Policy Committee: InsuranceVote:8 -
4
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable:
SUMMARY
This bill establishes several workers' compensation presumptions
for direct patient care workers at acute care hospitals
statewide. Specifically, this bill:
1)Establishes presumptions that blood-borne infectious diseases,
neck or back impairment, and methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) arise from employment for the
purposes of workers' compensation benefits.
2)Requires the workers' compensation benefits to include payment
for:
a) Full hospital
b) Surgical
c) Medical treatment
d) Disability indemnity
e) Death benefits
3)Extends to 180 days the period beyond separation from hospital
employment during which a hospital employee may rely on the
presumption relating to blood-borne infectious disease.
4)Extends to 90 days the period beyond separation from hospital
employment during which a hospital employee may rely on the
presumption relating to MRSA or back and neck injuries.
FISCAL EFFECT
Potential workers compensation cost increase in the range of
$2.5 million (various public funds). Those costs would be
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partially offset by the minor administrative savings associated
with reducing the number of dispute resolutions.
1)To the extent this legislation makes it easier for injured
employees to receive workers compensation benefits, hospitals
could experience increased workers' compensation costs by
application of the presumption to hospital employees who
provide direct patient care. Of the almost 150,000 employees
affected by this bill, 20% (30,000) are employed in public
hospitals. Public hospitals are self-insured for workers'
compensation claims, rather than paid through premiums.
Payments are treated in a pay-as-you-go manner. Therefore, an
increase in costs may have an impact on public and GF funds.
2)The fiscal impact of adding these presumptions is unknown.
Currently, back and neck injuries make up approximately 20% of
all workers compensation claims and infections account for
one-quarter of one percent. Given these low rates, it is
unlikely that adding these presumptions would increase costs
significantly. However, for every 1% increase in the number
public health care employees who file workers' compensation
claims each year, it would increase workers compensation costs
by approximately $2.5million (various public funds).
3)Minor administrative savings, likely less than $300,000
(various funds), to the extent adding these presumptions
simplifies the administration of these cases and reduces the
number of dispute resolutions, it would result in savings to
partially offset the increased costs. Based on Workers
Compensation Insurance Board (WCIB) data, self-insured
employers and the state spend over $800 million a year (20% of
program costs) in loss adjustment expenses and approximately
half of those expenses are for dispute resolution. Based on
this current expenditure data and the assumption that adding
these presumptions will significantly reduce, if not
eliminate, the need for dispute resolutions for workers with
these illnesses and injuries, at least $285,000 in savings
would result from the 1% increase in claims additional noted
above.
4)Unknown cost pressure, to the extent this bill causes an
increase in workers compensation claims that impact the
overall costs for public and private hospitals, which could
increase pressure on the Medi-Cal program to increase
reimbursements rates.
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COMMENTS
1)Rationale . This bill is sponsored by the California Nurses
Association to establish workers' compensation presumptions
for approximately 150,000 health care workers statewide.
Approximately 20% of those affected workers are employed by
public hospitals. Workers' compensation presumptions,
currently limited primarily to the public sector, have been
established to both account for increased risk in certain
types of work and to provide administrative simplification for
the most common work place injuries and illnesses in a
particular field. The author and sponsor of this bill indicate
nurses should join public safety professionals in having such
presumptions due to the hazardous nature of their work with
respect to musculoskeletal injuries and infection.
2)Background . California workers' compensation law provides that
workers are provided compensation benefits when an injury or
illness arises out of and in the course of employment. Current
law specifies that certain medical conditions suffered by
public safety officers (e.g., cancer, hernia, heart trouble,
pneumonia, tuberculosis, blood-borne infectious disease,
meningitis, and exposure to biochemical substances) are
presumed to have arisen in the course of employment.
3)Policy Considerations for the Legislature . This legislation
affects both public and private employees. Current workers
compensation presumptions are provided only to public safety
employees (firefighters, police officers, life guards, etc.),
who for the most part are public sector employees. The
Legislature should consider whether or not workers
compensation presumptions should be provided for private
sector employees.
4)Related Legislation . AB 664 (Skinner) of 2009 and AB 1994
(Skinner) of 2010 proposed similar provisions to this bill.
Both bills were held on this committee's suspense file.
Analysis Prepared by : Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)
319-2081
AB 375
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