UPDATE | 2021 WORKERS’ COMPENSATION LEGISLATION

Since the Legislature placed LB 256 and LB 407 on General File nearly two months ago, the body took no action on those bills until this past week. The Legislature gave first round approval to both bills and moved them to Select File on May 5th. On Wednesday the Legislature moved both bills to Final Reading, making it highly likely that both will become law.

LB 256

As you may recall, LB 256, introduced by Senator Matt Hansen, provides that a release may be used to finalize an agreement to resolve all issues other than future medical where the employee is eligible for Medicare, is a Medicare beneficiary, or has a reasonable expectation of becoming a Medicare beneficiary within 30 months of the settlement. At present, a claim involving such an employee, even if future medical care is not foreclosed by the settlement, must be approved by the Workers’ Compensation Court.

LB 407

As with “First responders” and “Frontline state employees”, LB 407, introduced by Senator McDonnell, provides that “county correctional officers” in “high-population” counties may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits for “mental-mental” injuries unaccompanied by physical injury if the conditions of their employment “were extraordinary and unusual in comparison to the normal conditions of the particular employment.” A “high-population” county is defined as one with more than 300 thousand inhabitants. Only Douglas County and Lancaster County currently fit that definition.

As always, if you have any questions about any of these bills, please call or email Dallas Jones or Paul Barta.