JEFFERSON CITY — A top priority for the 2013 legislative session is to reform the state’s workers’ compensation laws and sustain the Second Injury Fund to help countless Missourians who have been seriously injured on the job. Yesterday (5-16), legislation (SB 1) sponsored by Sen. Scott T. Rupp, R-Wentzville, to address workers’ compensation laws received the Legislature’s approval and was sent to the governor. Senator Rupp has continuously fought for workers’ compensation reform for the well-being of Missouri businesses and employees.

“Now that the Legislature has moved forward in revitalizing the Second Injury Fund and ensuring protections for Missouri job creators, we can be more certain that businesses can continue to succeed, all the while making sure that Missourians are protected while on the job and will receive quality care if they are injured while at work,” Sen. Rupp said. “I know many citizens and their families have been struggling as they await their settlement from the Second Injury Fund and have been frustrated with the insolvent system. This bill is a helpful tool to make life better for those families.”

Senate Bill 1 would create a funding mechanism to bolster the Second Injury Fund; a supplemental surcharge not to exceed 3 percent of net premiums from 2014 to 2021 would be imposed. Missourians who received a claim from the fund will receive their settlements first, and liabilities would be addressed in the order in which they were adjudicated.

The bill also states that employees of sheltered workshops who sustain a work-related injury that, when combined with a preexisting disability, results in permanent total disability, also have access to the Second Injury Fund. Sheltered workshops are private, not-for-profit corporations that hire people with disabilities. There are 93 workshop corporations located in Missouri, and these shops provide employment for approximately 7,500 people with disabilities. This provision of SB 1 is very important to Sen. Rupp, who is a firm advocate for bettering the lives of Missourians with disabilities.

In addition, Sen. Rupp’s legislation would make it clear that occupational diseases are exclusively covered under workers’ compensation laws. The bill would create enhanced benefits for Missourians who have certain occupational diseases, including approximately $157,000 for Missourians with diseases such as asbestosis and bronchiolitis obliterans, as well as $500,000 for citizens with mesothelioma. The Missouri Mesothelioma Risk Management Fund would be created by the legislation, which would be optional for Missouri employers and would pay Mesothelioma claims brought against contributing members.

As noted in the Missouri Constitution, the governor has until July 14 to either sign or veto legislation. If the governor neither signs nor vetoes SB 1 by that date, the bill will automatically become law. The effective date of SB 1 is Jan. 1, 2014. The last day of the 2013 legislative session is Friday, May 17. To follow the status of other bills from the 2013 legislative session, visit the Missouri Senate website at www.senate.mo.gov.