S3679-2013 Actions

• Feb 11, 2013: REFERRED TO LABOR

S3679-2013 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S3679

TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the workers' compensation law, in
relation to payment of disability benefits

PURPOSE:  This would require that injured workers receiving benefits
under the Workers' Compensation law be given reasonable time to respond
to any inquiry that requires timely response in order to avoid a
disruption in benefits and clear notice of the consequences of failure
to respond.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of the bill amends subdivision 1 of section 25 of the Workers'
Compensation law to require that when timely payment of benefits is
contingent on the recipient's timely response to an inquiry from the
insurer, the insurer shall provide a reasonable time period for response
and clear notice of the consequences of failing to respond by the dead-
line. Section 2 of the bill sets forth the effective date.

JUSTIFICATION:  It is unacceptable for injured workers receiving bene-
fits under the Workers' Compensation Law ("WCL") to suffer any delay or
lapse in payment for failure to follow requirements that are not
disclosed to them. Too often, insurers send injured workers written
requests for information but fail to provide a reasonable period in
which to respond or any indication that failure to respond could result
in a delay in benefits. Recipients accustomed to regular direct deposit
of benefit checks, for example, who have no reason to expect a problem,
incur hundreds of dollars in penalties for bounced checks and worse for
missing the response deadline. Recovering from this kind of disruption
can be particularly difficult for recipients relying on their benefits
as the primary or sole source of income.

With the enactment of Chapter 314 of 2010, the law was amended to remedy
this situation with respect to workers receiving disability benefits
under WCL Article 9. This bill would provide the same remedy for the
much larger number of workers receiving benefits under other sections of
the WCL which do not require advance notice of a potential disruption in
benefits for failure to timely respond to any inquiry.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:  2010 - No Senate bill; A.11711 died in the
Assembly Labor Committee.  2011 - died in Senate Labor Committee; passed
Assembly 2012 - died in Senate Labor Committee; passed Assembly

FISCAL IMPACT ON THE STATE: None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:  This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after
it shall have become a law.

S3679-2013 Text

                      S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
  ________________________________________________________________________

                                    3679

                         2013-2014 Regular Sessions

                              I N  SENATE

                              February 11, 2013
                                 ___________

  Introduced  by  Sen.  SAVINO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
    printed to be committed to the Committee on Labor

  AN ACT to amend the workers' compensation law, in relation to payment of
    disability benefits

    THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
  BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


    Section  1.  Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 25 of the work-
  ers' compensation law, as amended by chapter 635 of the laws of 1996, is
  amended to read as follows:

    (a) The compensation herein provided for shall  be  paid  periodically
  and promptly in like manner as wages, and as it accrues, and directly to
  the  person  entitled thereto without waiting for an award by the board,
  including those cases previously established and  closed  by  the  board
  upon  receipt  of  an  application  to reopen such case, except in those
  cases in which the right to compensation is controverted by the  employ-
  er.    ANY  INQUIRY  WHICH  REQUIRES THE EMPLOYEE'S RESPONSE IN ORDER TO
  CONTINUE BENEFITS UNINTERRUPTED OR UNMODIFIED SHALL PROVIDE A REASONABLE
  TIME PERIOD IN WHICH TO RESPOND AND INCLUDE A CLEAR AND PROMINENT STATE-
  MENT OF THE DEADLINE FOR RESPONDING AND THE CONSEQUENCES OF  FAILING  TO
  RESPOND.
    S  2.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
  have become a law.




   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD03068-01-3