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As part of the biennial budget process, the Ohio General Assembly passed House Bill 27 to create the worker’s compensation budget for 2018—2019. In addition to establishing the budget, the bill also amended sections of the Ohio Revised Code that relate to workers compensation law. Mainly among the changes, the bill shortens the statute of limitations for an employee to file a workers compensation claim against Ohio Employers.
Current law requires an employee to bring a workers’ compensation claim within two years from the date of injury or death. Effective September 29, 2017, all workers’ compensation claims must be filed within one year from the date of injury or death. After that date, if new claims are not brought within the one-year limitation the claim will be forever barred and there can be no recovery. All claims with a date of injury after September 29, 2017, are subject to the new limitation. The amendment attempts to strike a balance between allowing a sufficient time for a claim to be brought while not prejudicing employers by allowing claims to be filed long after any contemporaneous evidence has since vanished.
House Bill 27 also made a number of other minor amendments to worker’s compensation law, including the following. Under certain circumstances, individuals appealing to the court of common pleas may now be granted an extended period of time to file a notice of appeal. Attorney’s fees for successful claimant’s counsel in court appeals have been increased from $4,200.00 to $5,000.00. Lastly, Ohio’s workers’ compensation drug testing law was changed in order to mirror the Federal Department of Transportation’s drug testing cutoff concentrations.
If you have any questions, please contact attorney Ed Murray at 330-497-0700 or emurray@www.kwgd.com.
NOTE: This general summary of the law should not be used to solve individual problems since slight changes in the fact situation may require a material variance in the applicable legal advice.