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H0674...........................................................by BUSINESS
WORKER'S COMPENSATION - Amends existing law relating to worker's
compensation to provide that evaluations of permanent impairment shall only
be made by a qualified physician.
02/12 House intro - 1st rdg - to printing
02/13 Rpt prt - to Bus
]]]] LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ]]]]
Fifty-seventh Legislature Second Regular Session - 2004
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE BILL NO. 674
BY BUSINESS COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT
2 RELATING TO WORKER'S COMPENSATION BENEFITS; AMENDING SECTION 72-424, IDAHO
3 CODE, TO PROVIDE THAT EVALUATIONS OF PERMANENT IMPAIRMENT SHALL ONLY BE
4 MADE BY A QUALIFIED PHYSICIAN.
5 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
6 SECTION 1. That Section 72-424, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
7 amended to read as follows:
8 72-424. PERMANENT IMPAIRMENT EVALUATION. "Evaluation (rating) of perma-
9 nent impairment" is a medical appraisal, made only by a qualified physician,
10 of the nature and extent of the injury or disease as it affects an injured
11 employee's personal efficiency in the activities of daily living, such as
12 self-care, communication, normal living postures, ambulation, elevation,
13 traveling, and nonspecialized activities of bodily members.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS 13932
This measure clarifies that evaluations of permanent physical
impairment are to be prepared only by competent individuals,
namely, qualified physicians. The amendment is intended as a
housekeeping measure. It reinforces the legislature's intention
that impairment evaluations are to be medical evaluations. Due to
the wide variety of industrial injuries and occupational exposures
that Idaho's workers face, the growing complexity of the medical
factors that must be considered, and the increasing specialization
of the medical field, the law should assure that evaluations or
"ratings" of permanent physical impairment are performed only by
individuals with appropriate medical training, background and
expertise. Nothing in this provision is intended to preclude or
limit the Industrial Commission, as the trier of fact, from
averaging or otherwise weighing impairment ratings prepared by
qualified physicians. "Physician" is already defined in Idaho Code
Section 72-102(24). The term "qualified physician" also appears in
Idaho Code Sections 72-102(18) and 72-433(1).
FISCAL NOTE
There is no fiscal impact.
Contact: Teresa Molitor
Idaho Association of Commerce & Industry
343-1849
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE H 674