Or. Admin. Code § 436-060-0020 - Payment of Temporary Total Disability Compensation
(1)
Employer payment of temporary disability. An employer may pay
temporary disability compensation with the approval of the insurer . If the
insurer approves an employer to make such payment:
(a) The insurer continues to be responsible
for determining the worker's entitlement to compensation, and ensuring timely
payment of compensation;
(b) The
employer must provide the insurer with payment documentation that is adequate
to meet the insurer 's responsibilities; and
(c) The insurer must reimburse the employer
for any temporary disability compensation paid to the worker under this
section.
(2)
Persons who have withdrawn from the workforce. No temporary
disability is due and payable for any period of time in which the person has
withdrawn from the workforce. For the purpose of this rule, a person who has
withdrawn from the workforce, includes, but is not limited to:
(a) A person who, before a claim reopening
under ORS 656.267,
656.273 or
656.278, was not working and
made no reasonable efforts to obtain employment, unless such efforts would be
futile as a result of the compensable injury.
(b) A person who was a full-time student for
at least six months in the 52 weeks before the date of injury who elects to
return to school full time, unless the person can establish a prior customary
pattern of working while attending school. For purposes of this subsection,
"full time" is defined as twelve or more quarter hours or the
equivalent.
(3)
Authorization of temporary disability compensation. No
compensation is due and payable after the worker's attending physician or
authorized nurse practitioner ceases to authorize temporary disability, or for
any period of time when temporary disability benefits are not authorized by a
medical service provider under ORS
656.245(2)(b).
Temporary disability compensation is authorized when:
(a) The medical service provider provides the
insurer or employer with oral or written verification of the worker's inability
to work;
(b) Documents in the
insurer 's possession at claim closure reasonably reflect the worker's inability
to work. For the purposes of this rule "documents" and "possession" have the
same meaning as in OAR
436-060-0017(1);
or
(c) The director determines, at
reconsideration of claim closure, there is sufficient contemporaneous medical
documentation to reasonably reflect the worker's inability to work under ORS
656.268.
(4)
Lack of verification of inability
to work. No temporary disability is due and payable for any period of
time during which the insurer has requested from the worker's attending
physician or authorized nurse practitioner verification of the worker's
inability to work and the physician or authorized nurse practitioner cannot
verify it, unless the worker has been unable to receive treatment for reasons
beyond the worker's control.
(a) Before
withholding temporary disability under this section, the insurer must ask the
worker whether a reason beyond the worker's control prevented the worker from
receiving treatment.
(A) If no valid reason is
found or the worker does not respond or cannot be located, the insurer must
document its file regarding those findings.
(B) The insurer must provide the director a
copy of the documentation within 20 days, if requested.
(b) If the attending physician or authorized
nurse practitioner is unable to verify the worker's inability to work, the
insurer may not end temporary disability benefits until written notice has been
mailed or delivered under OAR
436-060-0015(7).
(c) When verification of temporary disability
is received from the attending physician or authorized nurse practitioner , the
insurer must pay temporary disability within 14 days of receiving the
verification of any authorized period of temporary disability, unless otherwise
denied.
(5)
Suspension of benefits. An insurer may suspend temporary
disability benefits without authorization from the director when all of the
following circumstances apply:
(a) The worker
missed a regularly scheduled appointment with the attending physician or
authorized nurse practitioner ;
(b)
The insurer sent a letter by certified mail to the worker and a letter to the
worker's attorney, at least 10 days in advance of a rescheduled appointment,
stating that the appointment has been rescheduled with the worker's attending
physician or authorized nurse practitioner , stating the time and date of the
appointment, and giving:
(A) The following
notice, in prominent or bold text:
"You must attend this appointment. If there is any reason you cannot attend, you must tell us before the date of the appointment. If you do not attend, your temporary disability benefits will be suspended without further notice, as provided by ORS 656.262(4) (e)."
(B)
Effective no later than Oct. 1, 2024, the notice in (b)(A) of this section must
be replaced with the following notice in bold and formatted as follows:
You must attend this appointment. If there is any reason you cannot attend, you must tell us before the date of the appointment. If you do not attend, your temporary disability benefits will be suspended without further notice under Oregon law.*
If you have any questions you may call:
- [
- Workers' Compensation
- Ombuds Office for Oregon Workers at 800-927-1271 (toll-free)
*Oregon Revised Statute 656.262(4)(e)
(c) The insurer verifies
that the worker has missed the rescheduled appointment; and
(d) The insurer sends a letter to the worker,
the worker's attorney and the division giving the date of the regularly
scheduled appointment that was missed, the date of the rescheduled appointment
that was missed, the date of the letter being the day benefits are suspended,
and:
(A) The following notice, in prominent or
bold text:
"Since you missed a regular appointment with your doctor, we arranged a new appointment. We notified you of the new appointment by certified mail and warned you that your benefits would be suspended if you failed to attend. Since you failed to attend the new appointment, your temporary disability benefits have been suspended. In order to resume your benefits, you must schedule and attend an appointment with your doctor who must verify your continued inability to work."
(B) Effective no later than Oct. 1, 2024, the
notice in (d)(A) of this section must be replaced with the following notice in
bold and formatted as follows:
We have suspended your temporary disability benefits, because you missed a regular appointment with your doctor.
When we arranged a new appointment for [date], we notified you in a letter that was sent by certified mail.
The letter warned you that we would suspend your benefits if you did not attend, and you did not attend the new appointment.
To resume your benefits:
- You must schedule and attend an appointment with your doctor, and
- Your doctor must verify that you are still unable to work.
(6)
Verbal release to work. If
temporary disability benefits end because the insurer or employer negotiates a
verbal release of the worker to return to any type of work with the worker's
attending physician or authorized nurse practitioner , and the worker has not
been informed of the release by the attending physician or authorized nurse
practitioner or returned to work, the insurer must:
(a) Document the facts;
(b) Communicate the release to the worker by
mail within seven days. The communication to the worker of the negotiated
return-to-work release may be contained in an offer of modified employment;
and
(c) Advise the worker of their
reinstatement rights under ORS chapter 659A.
(7)
Temporary disability from two or
more claims. When a worker is due concurrent temporary disability under
ORS 656.210 or ORS
656.212 as a result of two or
more accepted claims:
(a) The director may
order one of the insurers to pay the entire amount of temporary disability due;
or make a pro rata distribution between two or more of the insurers;
(b) The insurers may request for the director
to make a pro rata distribution of compensation due. The request must be in
writing, and the insurer must provide a copy to the worker and the worker's
attorney, if any;
(c) The
director 's pro rata order does not apply to:
(A) Any periods of interim compensation
payable under ORS 656.262; or
(B) Any benefits due under ORS
656.214 or
656.245;
(d) Claims subject to the pro rata order must
be closed under OAR 436-030 and ORS
656.268, when
appropriate;
(e) The pro rata
distribution ordered by the director only applies to benefits due as of the
date all claims involved are in an accepted status. The order pro-rating
compensation will not apply to periods where any claim involved is in a
deferred status;
(f) The insurers
may not prorate temporary disability without the approval of the director ,
except when the claims involve the same worker, the same employer , and the same
insurer . When the insurer prorates temporary disability under this subsection
the worker must receive compensation at the highest temporary disability rate
of the claims involved.
(8)
Premature closure. If a
closure under ORS 656.268 has been found to be
premature and there was an open-ended authorization of temporary disability at
the time of closure, the insurer must begin payments under ORS
656.262, including retroactive
periods, and pay temporary disability for as long as authorization exists or
until there are other lawful bases to terminate temporary disability.
(9)
Incorrectly denied claims.
If a denied claim has been determined to be compensable by final order, the
insurer must begin temporary disability payments under ORS
656.262, including retroactive
periods, if the authorization for temporary disability was open-ended at the
time of denial, and there are no other lawful bases to terminate temporary
disability.
Notes
Statutory/Other Authority: ORS 656.210(2), ORS 656.245, ORS 656.262 & ORS 656.726(4)
Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS 656.245, ORS 656.262, ORS 656.210, ORS 656.212 & ORS 656.307
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