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Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to labor
- Referred to labor
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Relates to payment of disability benefits
In Senate Committee · Labor · Sponsor Brian Kavanagh
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S4176
Title of bill
An act to amend the workers' compensation law, in relation to payment of disability benefits
Purpose
To 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 deadline. Section 2 of the bill sets forth the effective date.
Justification
It is unacceptable for injured workers receiving benefits 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 A.00619/S.5108 in August 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 Labor Committee.
Fiscal impact on the state
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall have become a law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.