Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Bill to add PTSD as a compensable workers' comp injury for first responders draws emotional testimony and fiscal debate
Summary
Senate Bill 394 would make post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) a compensable workers' compensation injury for specified first responders. Sponsors and first-responder organizations argued early treatment reduces costs and saves careers; insurers and self-insured employers warned of uncertain long-term costs and urged study; sponsor offered an
Senate Finance and Claims heard testimony on Senate Bill 394, a proposal to add post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a compensable work-related injury for a narrowly defined set of first responders. The sponsor framed the bill as narrow, limited to PTSD (not broader mental-health diagnoses), and targeted to specified job classes.
Sponsor Senator Cora Newman (Senate District 30) rebutted the fiscal note and said the committee should consider data from comparable states and studies showing early treatment reduces per-claim cost. "The fiscal notes assumptions are overly conservative and not supported by real world data," Newman said, citing…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
