Comp will pay for officer exposure to bodily fluids

Ohio corrections workers exposed to another person’s bodily fluids will be covered by workers compensation for medical diagnosis services under a bill signed into law Tuesday by Gov. Mike DeWine.

H.B. 81, which passed unanimously in the state’s House and Senate, will require correctional institutions and detention centers to pay for the cost of an initial or any subsequent medical examinations that resulted from the worker’s exposure to another individual’s bodily fluids.

If the worker is unable to work or suffers a wage loss as a result of an impairment from that exposure, the law states that the worker is entitled to receive workers compensation.

The law will apply to claims arising on or after July 1, 2020.