BILL ANALYSIS |
C.S.H.B. 1468 |
By: Sheets |
Business & Industry |
Committee Report (Substituted) |
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Interested parties contend that a recent decision of the Texas Supreme Court impacts the confidentiality of communications between an insured employer and its insurance carrier with regard to the handling of workers' compensation claims. The parties further contend that the inability to have a frank, confidential discussion between the policyholder and insurance carrier prevents the meaningful exercise of the employer's statutory rights to participate in the investigation and resolution of a workers' compensation claim.
C.S.H.B. 1468 seeks to revise the applicable laws under the Texas Workers' Compensation Act with the goal of restoring the confidentiality of communications between the policyholder and the workers' compensation insurance carrier.
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RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
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ANALYSIS
C.S.H.B. 1468 amends the Labor Code to specify that communications between an insurance carrier and a covered employer are confidential and not subject to disclosure if the communications include certain information and are made in furtherance of the covered employer's rights. The bill authorizes the insurance carrier to refuse to disclose and to prevent the disclosure by another person of such confidential communications.
C.S.H.B. 1468 exempts from its provisions communications between an insurance carrier and covered employer that are offered as evidence in a judicial proceeding between the insurance carrier and a covered employer; communications made to the insurance carrier by the covered employer through a method that constitutes a certain administrative violation; or public records subject to state public information law. The bill's provisions do not affect the requirement to exchange documentation under Texas Workers' Compensation Act provisions relating to the adjudication of disputes or affect the right of the commissioner of insurance to obtain information from an insurance carrier or covered employer in monitoring for compliance the Texas Workers' Compensation Act and other related laws. The bill specifies that, for the purposes of the bill's provisions, a reference to the insurance carrier or covered employer includes the insurance carrier's or covered employer's attorneys, consultants, sureties, indemnitors, employees, third-party administrators, and other agents.
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EFFECTIVE DATE
September 1, 2013.
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COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE
While C.S.H.B. 1468 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following comparison is organized and highlighted in a manner that indicates the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.
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