HB 723

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to state reciprocity in workers'
3	compensation claims; amending s. 440.09, F.S.; providing
4	extraterritorial coverage; exempting certain employees
5	working in this state and the employers of such employees
6	from the Workers' Compensation Law of this state under
7	certain conditions; providing requirements for the
8	establishment of prima facie evidence that the employer
9	carries certain workers' compensation insurance; requiring
10	courts to take judicial notice of the construction of
11	certain laws; authorizing the Division of Workers'
12	Compensation to enter into agreements with the workers'
13	compensation agencies of other states for certain
14	purposes; providing requirements for claims made in other
15	states; providing criteria for employees to be considered
16	temporarily in a state; providing application; providing
17	an effective date.
18
19	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
20
21	Section 1.  Paragraph (e) is added to subsection (1) of
22	section 440.09, Florida Statutes, to read:
23	440.09  Coverage.-
24	(1)  The employer must pay compensation or furnish benefits
25	required by this chapter if the employee suffers an accidental
26	compensable injury or death arising out of work performed in the
27	course and the scope of employment. The injury, its occupational
28	cause, and any resulting manifestations or disability must be
29	established to a reasonable degree of medical certainty, based
30	on objective relevant medical findings, and the accidental
31	compensable injury must be the major contributing cause of any
32	resulting injuries. For purposes of this section, "major
33	contributing cause" means the cause which is more than 50
34	percent responsible for the injury as compared to all other
35	causes combined for which treatment or benefits are sought. In
36	cases involving occupational disease or repetitive exposure,
37	both causation and sufficient exposure to support causation must
38	be proven by clear and convincing evidence. Pain or other
39	subjective complaints alone, in the absence of objective
40	relevant medical findings, are not compensable. For purposes of
41	this section, "objective relevant medical findings" are those
42	objective findings that correlate to the subjective complaints
43	of the injured employee and are confirmed by physical
44	examination findings or diagnostic testing. Establishment of the
45	causal relationship between a compensable accident and injuries
46	for conditions that are not readily observable must be by
47	medical evidence only, as demonstrated by physical examination
48	findings or diagnostic testing. Major contributing cause must be
49	demonstrated by medical evidence only.
50	(e)1.  If an employee in this state subject to this chapter
51	temporarily leaves the state incidental to his or her employment
52	and receives an accidental injury arising out of and in the
53	course of employment, the employee, or beneficiaries of the
54	employee if the injury results in death, is entitled to the
55	benefits of this chapter as if the employee were injured within
56	this state.
57	2.  An employee from another state and the employer of the
58	employee in the other state are exempt from this chapter while
59	the employee is temporarily in this state doing work for the
60	employer if:
61	a.  The employer has furnished workers' compensation
62	insurance coverage under the workers' compensation insurance or
63	similar laws of the other state to cover the employee's
64	employment while in this state;
65	b.  The extraterritorial provisions of this chapter are
66	recognized in the other state; and
67	c.  Employees and employers who are covered in this state
68	are likewise exempted from the application of the workers'
69	compensation insurance or similar laws of the other state.
70	3.  The benefits under the workers' compensation insurance
71	or similar laws of the other state, or other remedies under
72	similar law, are the exclusive remedy against the employer for
73	any injury, whether resulting in death or not, received by the
74	employee while temporarily working for that employer in this
75	state.
76	4.  A certificate from the duly authorized officer of the
77	department or similar department of another state certifying
78	that the employer of the other state is insured in that state
79	and has provided extraterritorial coverage insuring employees
80	while working in this state is prima facie evidence that the
81	employer carries that workers' compensation insurance.
82	5.  Whenever in any appeal or other litigation the
83	construction of the laws of another jurisdiction is required,
84	the courts shall take judicial notice of such construction of
85	the laws of the other jurisdiction.
86	6.  The division may enter into an agreement with the
87	workers' compensation agency of any other state relating to
88	conflicts of jurisdiction where the contract of employment is in
89	one state and the injuries occur in the other state, or where
90	there is a dispute as to the boundaries or jurisdiction of the
91	states; and, when such an agreement has been executed and made
92	public by the respective state agencies, the rights of employees
93	hired in the other state and injured while temporarily in this
94	state, or hired in this state and injured while temporarily in
95	the other state, or where the jurisdiction is otherwise
96	uncertain, shall be determined pursuant to such agreement and
97	confined to the jurisdiction provided in the agreement.
98	7.  When an employee has a claim under the workers'
99	compensation law of another state, territory, province, or
100	foreign nation for the same injury or occupational disease as
101	the claim filed in this state, the total amount of compensation
102	paid or awarded under such other workers' compensation law shall
103	be credited against the compensation due under the Florida
104	Workers' Compensation Law. The employee is entitled to the full
105	amount of compensation due under the Florida Workers'
106	Compensation Law. If compensation under the Florida Workers'
107	Compensation Law is more than the compensation under another
108	law, or compensation paid to the employee under another law is
109	recovered from the employee, the insurer shall pay any unpaid
110	compensation to the employee up to the amount required by the
111	claim under the Florida Workers' Compensation Law.
112	8.  For purposes of this paragraph, an employee is
113	considered to be temporarily in a state doing work for an
114	employer if the employee is working for his employer in a state
115	other than the state where he or she is primarily employed, for
116	no more than 10 consecutive days, or no more than 25 total days,
117	during a calendar year.
118	9.  This paragraph applies to any claim made on or after
119	July 1, 2011, regardless of the date of the accident.
120	Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2011.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.