House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda

Imagine being permanently scarred or disfigured on the job and not being eligible for workers’ compensation. This is the situation that Pennsylvania workers may face if the disfigurement occurs below the neck. Under current law, this coverage is only provided when individuals suffer from serious or permanent disfigurement of the head, neck, or face. While bodily injuries may not be visible under normal circumstances, they can still cause substantial physical and emotional distress. 
 
We plan on reintroducing legislation (former House Bill 2061) to resolve this oversight in the Workers’ Compensation Act to ensure that workers who are seriously or permanently disfigured are eligible for workers’ compensation. In addition, this bill will extend existing workers’ compensation eligibility for permanent disfigurement from 275 weeks to 400 weeks and clarify that claimants are not precluded from collecting both total or partial disability benefits and disfigurement benefits simultaneously. 
 
Workers should be provided workers’ compensation coverage for disfigurement regardless of where it occurs on their bodies. Please join us in fixing this loophole in Pennsylvania’s workers’ compensation system. 

 

Co-sponsors of former House Bill 2061: Mullery, Cephas, Delloso, Innamorato, Krueger, McNeill, O'Mara, Pisciottano, Snyder, Rabb, Harkins, Freeman, Schlossberg, Merski, N. Nelson, Hill-Evans, Hohenstein, Neilson, Guenst, Isaacson, Deluca, Sanchez, Madden, Ciresi, Malagari, and Otten.