Bill would provide claimants permanent disability for ‘extreme’ financial hardship

New York lawmakers are considering a bill that would amend the workers compensation law to allow “certain” injured workers to be reclassified to permanent total disability or total industrial disability due to “extreme hardship.”

A.B. 3723, introduced Thursday and referred to the Labor Committee, defines hardship under several conditions:

·    The injured worker’s income from Social Security disability benefits and disability pension, if applicable, would be less than 50% of such injured worker’s average weekly wage upon termination of permanent partial disability benefits.

·    The injured worker would be unable to meet expenses for themself and any dependents upon termination of permanent partial disability benefits.

·    Additional medical, functional, or vocational factors arising after the classification of permanent partial disability have further eroded the injured worker’s wage-earning capacity.

·    The injured worker’s income would be below the federal poverty guidelines upon termination of permanent partial disability benefits.

The Assembly on Thursday also read through A.B. 3890, which would provide disability payments to transit workers who are injured in violent attacks.

The bill, which was referred to the Corporations, Authorities and Commissions Committee, states that such a worker “shall be entitled, in addition to any workers compensation payment and any other benefit received,” to a disability benefit payment equal to one-half of the weekly workers compensation payment, “excluding schedule awards that the employee receives for the same disability.”