RS 2581.2 - Posttraumatic stress injury; presumption of compensability
A. Except as provided in Subsection E of this Section, any benefit payable to any emergency medical services personnel, any employee of a police department, or any fire employee for temporary and permanent disability when the employee suffers an injury or disease arising out of and in the course and scope of his employment, shall include coverage for posttraumatic stress injury.
B. For purposes of this Section, the following definitions shall apply:
(1) "Emergency medical services personnel" shall have the same meaning as it is defined pursuant to R.S. 40:1075.3 so long as the emergency medical services personnel is employed pursuant to this Chapter.
(2) "Employee of a police department" shall have the same meaning as it is defined pursuant to R.S. 33:2211.
(3) "Fire employee" means any person employed in the fire department of any municipality, parish, or fire protection district that maintains full-time regularly paid fire department employment, regardless of the specific duties of such person within the fire department. "Fire employee" also includes employees of nonprofit corporations under contract with a fire protection district or other political subdivision to provide fire protection services, including operators of the fire-alarm system when such operators are members of the regularly constituted fire department.
(4) "Posttraumatic stress injury" means those injuries which are defined as "posttraumatic stress disorder" by the most recently published edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders by the American Psychiatric Association caused by an event occurring in the course and scope of employment.
(5) "Psychiatrist" shall have the same meaning as it is defined pursuant to R.S. 23:1371.1.
(6) "Psychologist" shall have the same meaning as it is defined pursuant to R.S. 23:1371.1.
C. Except as provided in Subsection E of this Section:
(1) Any emergency medical services personnel, any employee of a police department, any fire employee, or any volunteer fireman who is diagnosed by a psychiatrist or psychologist with posttraumatic stress injury, either during employment in the classified service in the state of Louisiana pursuant to this Chapter or thereafter, shall be presumed, prima facie, to have a disease or infirmity connected with his employment.
(2) Once diagnosed with posttraumatic stress injury as provided for in Paragraph (1) of this Subsection, the employee affected or his survivors shall be entitled to all rights and benefits as granted by state law to one suffering an occupational disease and who is entitled as service connected in the line of duty, regardless of whether the employee is employed at the time of diagnosis.
D. A posttraumatic stress injury that arises solely from a legitimate personnel action such as a transfer, promotion, demotion, or termination, is not a compensable injury pursuant to this Chapter.
E.(1) Nothing in this Section shall modify the qualifications necessary to establish eligibility to receive benefits or the calculation of benefits to be paid under any Louisiana public pension or retirement system, plan, or fund.
(2) In case of a conflict between any provision of Title 11 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, including any provision in Subpart E of Part II of Chapter 4 of Title 11 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950, and any provision of this Section, the provision of Title 11 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950 shall control.
Acts 2019, No. 122, §2.