Erlanger Health System Policy and Procedure

Transcription

1 Reviewed/Revised: Mo/Yr: September 2005 Erlanger Health System Policy and Procedure Index Title Job Injury Compensation Number Originating Department Human Resources Effective Date 5/14/98 SCOPE: All regular full-time, regular part-time, relief pool, and temporary Erlanger Health System employees. POLICY: The purpose of this policy is to provide a mechanism whereby employees of Erlanger Health System are uniformly evaluated, treated, and compensated for injuries/illnesses that occur in the course of their employment. A single JOB INJURY is defined as an injury, illness, or exposure, including an aggravation or remanifestation of that original injury, illness, or exposure. The job injury must have occurred accidentally in the course of employment. The Employee Services Department has the sole discretion to determine whether a job injury is compensable. A. Employee Responsibilities The employee must report the incident to his/her supervisor/department head within 24 hours of the occurrence of the injury or knowledge of exposure. In the absence of the immediate supervisor or department head, the employee should report the injury to the Administrative Representative on duty. If the resulting injury, illness, or exposure results in a medical emergency or involves a needle stick or exposure to body substances, the employee shall report immediately to Employee Health (or to the Emergency Department for follow-up when Employee Health is closed). Employees must keep appointments for examination or follow-up treatment. The employee must return to work as instructed by the person rendering treatment. If the employee fails to follow directions of the person rendering treatment, all job injury benefits may be suspended.

2 Page 2 of 5 Erlanger Health System shall be liable only for treatment/expense approved in advance by the Employee Services Department. All hospitalizations for job injuries shall be at Erlanger Health System facility. An employee will not be permitted to work an outside job while receiving job injury pay. Any exceptions must be approved in advance by the Employee Services Department. If an employee is approved to work an outside job, the employee will be entitled to job injury pay reduced by earnings from outside employment. Employees are required to keep appointments for examination or follow-up treatments. Employees released by their physicians to light-duty status will be required to report to Employee Services at 8:00 a.m., Monday through Friday, for possible job assignments within the Health System. All assignments will be within the light duty restrictions imposed by the job injury physician. Only employees held off work by the job injury physician will be excused from reporting for light duty- assignments. Employees who do not report for light-duty assignments will have their job injury pay terminated. Employees with work restrictions that will not allow them to return to their last position may be given work assignments within their job restrictions. Employees who refuse work assignments will have their job injury pay terminated. B. Department Head Responsibilities The department head (or designee) is responsible to assure that pertinent details of the job injury are documented promptly on the Employee Injury, Illness, Exposure Report form (BEH 124-A). The report form must be completed prior to the end of the shift on which the accident occurred. The employee should be advised to take the completed form to Employee Health for treatment (or Emergency Department if Employee Health is closed). The department head notifies Employee Services each pay period of all lost work time due to the job injury. Employees will be paid only for scheduled time when held off the job by the job injury physician. Department heads are asked to light duty opportunities in their department every two weeks to the job injury address.

3 Page 3 of 5 C. Employee Services Responsibilities After receiving the completed Employee Injury, Illness, Exposure Report form, Employee Services will determine the compensability of the reported incident. Employee Services will verify that all hours turned in for job injury pay is for schedule time held off by the job injury physician. Employee Services will administer the light-duty placement program. After the fourth month of continuous loss time benefits, the Employee Services Department will contact the employee to make arrangements to apply for long-term disability benefits. D. Schedule of Job Injury Benefits The Authority will pay all necessary and reasonable medical expenses directly related to the job injury incurred for treatment by or at the direction of the Employee Services Department and/or the Occupational Medicine Department. The Authority shall not be liable for the cost or purchase of equipment, supplies, services or medications unless prescribed specifically by the Occupational Medicine Department. All hospitalizations for job injuries shall be at Erlanger Health System facilities. Health and dental insurance provided by the Authority will continue while job injury benefits are paid. Premiums will continue through payroll deduction. The maximum duration of Job Injury benefits is two years from the date of injury. SALARY is defined as the employee's base hourly rate of pay times the FTE equivalent in hours (determined by the current Personnel Status Notice on file) and will exclude premiums, differentials, and any other pay above base rate. Employees will receive a maximum of two years compensation at 66 2/3% of base pay. The 66 2/3% job injury pay will be tax free except for the first six months when FICA withholdings must be made.

4 Page 4 of 5 If, after two years of receiving job injury compensation, the employee is unable to perform the essential functions of any available job at Erlanger Health System for which the employee is qualified, the employee may choose to remain in the Leave of Absence cost center in an unpaid status for an additional 12 months. Employees receiving job injury pay will not accrue PAL or EIB. E. Job Injury Benefit Exclusions No compensation or medical payments will be provided for any injury due to an employee s willful misconduct, involvement in horse play, intentional, self-inflicted injury, or due to intoxication, willful failure or refusal to use a safety appliance, follow a safety rule, and/or perform a duty as required. No compensation shall be allowed for aggravation or exacerbation of preexisting conditions. Termination of employment at Erlanger Health System will result in termination of job injury benefits. F. Return to Work Reinstatement rights for employees on job injury leave apply for four months (120 calendar days) from the beginning of the leave. Employees returning to work after 120 days will be eligible to apply for available positions for which they meet minimum qualifications. If the employee refuses a job for which he/she is qualified and which, in the opinion of the Employee Health Physician, can be performed by the employee, all job injury benefits shall be discontinued immediately. G. Dispute Resolution All disputes regarding job injury benefits may be addressed by the employee through the grievance procedure. H. Subrogation Lien By accepting payments under the Job Injury Guidelines, the employee agrees that Erlanger Health System is assigned all rights of recovery the employee might have against a third party--up to the amount of all expenses incurred by EHS under the Job Injury Compensation Plan, including future expenses or salary payments. Erlanger Health System s subrogation interest shall be first satisfied on a 100-percent basis before the employee may retain any amount which he/she might recover through judgment, settlement, or otherwise.

5 Page 5 of 5 I. Continued Benefits Employees are expected to comply with all aspects of the job injury benefit plan. Failure to do so will result in termination of benefits and possible termination of employment. Approved by οchairman of Personnel Committee οchairman of Board of Trustees Vice President of Human Resources