2007 Oregon Code - Chapter 655 :: Chapter 655 - Benefits for Injured Trainees and Inmates
Chapter 655 —
Benefits for Injured Trainees and Inmates
2007 EDITION
BENEFITS FOR INJURED TRAINEES AND INMATES
LABOR, EMPLOYMENT; UNLAWFUL DISCRIMINATION
BENEFITS FOR INJURED INMATES OF PENITENTIARY, CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION
OR WORK CAMP
655.505Â Â Â Â Definitions
for ORS 655.505 to 655.555
655.510Â Â Â Â Benefits
for injuries in authorized employment; establishing injury claim; exclusive
remedy
655.515Â Â Â Â Benefits,
training and medical services under ORS 655.505 to 655.555; rules
655.520Â Â Â Â Filing
claim for benefits; rules; initial award; limitations
655.525Â Â Â Â Procedure
for review of claims
655.530Â Â Â Â Assignment
of benefits under ORS 655.505 to 655.555
655.535Â Â Â Â Charging
claims costs
655.540Â Â Â Â Disposition
and use of assessments
655.545Â Â Â Â Liability
for payment of benefits; precedence of expenses; priority among claimants
655.550Â Â Â Â Assessment
of Oregon Department of Administrative Services for costs of WorkersÂ’
Compensation Board
655.555Â Â Â Â Rules
for administration of fund for inmate injuries
BENEFITS FOR INJURED OCCUPATIONALLY LIMITED
TRAINEES
655.605Â Â Â Â Definitions
for ORS 655.605 and 655.615
655.615Â Â Â Â Payment
of benefits to injured occupationally limited trainees
     655.010 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.020 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.030 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.040 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.050 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.060 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.070 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.080 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.090 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.100 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.110 [Amended by 1965 c.285 §84; 1967 c.359 §696;
renumbered 652.720]
     655.120 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.130 [Amended by 1967 c.359 §697; renumbered
652.710]
     655.140 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.150 [Amended by 1965 c.285 §85; repealed by 1967
c.359 §704]
     655.160 [Repealed by 1967 c.359 §704]
     655.170 [Repealed by 1965 c.285 §95]
     655.210 [Repealed by 1965 c.285 §95]
     655.405 [1963 c.472 §1; 1969 c.247 §5; repealed by
1979 c.814 §1]
     655.410 [1963 c.472 §§2,5; repealed by 1979 c.814 §1]
     655.415 [1963 c.472 §4; repealed by 1979 c.814 §1]
     655.420 [1963 c.472 §6; 1965 c.285 §79a; repealed by
1979 c.814 §1]
     655.425 [1963 c.472 §9; repealed by 1979 c.814 §1]
     655.430 [1963 c.472 §7; repealed by 1979 c.814 §1]
     655.435 [1963 c.472 §3; repealed by 1979 c.814 §1]
     655.440 [1963 c.472 §§8,13; repealed by 1979 c.814 §1]
     655.445 [1963 c.472 §§10,12,14; 1967 c.335 §53; 1967
c.637 §§24, 24a; repealed by 1979 c.814 §1]
     655.450 [1963 c.472 §11; repealed by 1979 c.814 §1]
     655.460 [1965 c.285 §79c; repealed by 1979 c.814 §1]
BENEFITS FOR
INJURED INMATES OF PENITENTIARY, CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION OR WORK CAMP
     655.505
Definitions for ORS 655.505 to 655.555. As used in ORS 655.505 to 655.555:
     (1) “Attending practitioner” means
Department of Corrections medical staff, or specialists assisting Department of
Corrections medical staff, while the inmate is committed to the physical and
legal custody of the Department of Corrections. At all other times, “attending
practitioner” means a person licensed in
     (2) “Authorized work or occupational
training assignment” means the work assignment of an inmate:
     (a) As authorized by ORS 421.305 to
421.340;
     (b) As authorized by ORS 421.450 to
421.480;
     (c) As authorized by ORS 144.410 to
144.525; or
     (d) In any other inmate activity or
program, including, but not limited to, on-the-job training established by the
Department of Corrections under section 41, Article I, Oregon Constitution,
whether or not compensation has been established by the Director of the
Department of Corrections for participation in the activity or program.
     (3) “Department” means the Oregon
Department of Administrative Services.
     (4) “Injury” means:
     (a) An accidental injury or accidental
injury to prosthetic devices occurring in the course of, and caused in major
part by, an authorized work or occupational training assignment requiring
medical services and resulting in disability or death; or
     (b) Any disease or infection that:
     (A) Arises out of, and in the course of,
an authorized work or occupational training assignment;
     (B) Is caused in major part by ingestion,
absorption or inhalation of, or contact with, dust, fumes, vapors, gases,
radiation or other substances to which a worker who is not an inmate is not
ordinarily subjected or exposed while working;
     (C) Requires medical services; and
     (D) Results in disability or death.
     (5) “Inmate” means a person committed to
the physical and legal custody of the Department of Corrections.
     (6) “Medical services” means reasonable
and necessary services prescribed by an attending practitioner for conditions
resulting from injury for a period that the nature of the injury or the process
of recovery requires. “Medical services” includes medical, surgical, hospital,
nursing, ambulance and other related services, drugs, medicine, crutches and
prosthetic appliances, braces and supports and, when necessary, physical
restorative services.
     (7) “Medically stationary” means that no
further material improvement would reasonably be expected from medical
treatment or the passage of time.
     (8) The terms “beneficiary,” “child” and “dependent”
are defined as provided in ORS 656.005. [1963 c.527 §1; 1967 c.504 §10; 1969
c.247 §6; 1969 c.597 §63; 1975 c.631 §1; 1987 c.320 §241; 1991 c.566 §7; 1993
c.500 §50; 1995 c.384 §18; 1997 c.851 §14]
     655.510
Benefits for injuries in authorized employment; establishing injury claim;
exclusive remedy. (1) Every
inmate shall receive benefits as provided in ORS 655.505 to 655.555 for injury
sustained in an authorized work or occupational training assignment:
     (a) Where the injury is proximately caused
by or received in the course of the authorized work or occupational training
assignment, with or without negligence of the inmate;
     (b) Where the injury is not intentionally
self-inflicted;
     (c) Where the injury is not a result of a
willful violation of work rules or rules regulating inmate conduct or premises
security; and
     (d) Where the injury does not occur to an
active participant in an assault or combat that is not connected to the job
assignment and that constitutes a deviation from customary duties.
     (2) An injury must be established by
medical evidence supported by objective findings. The medical evidence must be
substantiated by verifiable pathological indication of injury that includes,
but is not limited to, range of motion, atrophy, muscle strength, palpable
muscle spasm and diagnostic evidence substantiated by clinical findings.
Objective findings do not include physical findings or subjective responses to
physical examinations that are not consistently reproducible, measurable or
observable, or do not fit an anatomical pattern and that cannot be demonstrated
after reasonable medical evaluation. A claimantÂ’s statement to a physician or
other party does not constitute objective medical evidence sufficient to substantiate
an injury.
     (3) The following circumstances do not
constitute a basis for establishing an injury:
     (a) Compulsion to participate in
employment or training;
     (b) Disciplinary action taken by the
Department of Corrections;
     (c) Action taken by the Department of
Corrections to protect the safety of persons other than inmates or of other
inmates or to maintain order; or
     (d) Actions of other inmates.
     (4) The filing of claims for benefits
under ORS 655.505 to 655.555 is the exclusive remedy of an inmate or
beneficiary of the inmate for injuries compensable under ORS 655.505 to 655.555
against the state or its political subdivisions or any person or entity that
contracts with the Department of Corrections for the services of inmate labor,
any person or entity that employs an inmate in a work release program
established under ORS 144.420 or any owner or manager of premises where
authorized work or occupational training assignments occur, regardless of
negligence. This section applies to any work-related injury to, or conditions
of, an inmate whether or not the injury is determined to be compensable under
ORS 655.505 to 655.555. [1963 c.527 §§2,4; 1995 c.384 §19]
     655.515
Benefits, training and medical services under ORS 655.505 to 655.555; rules. If an inmate sustains an injury as described
in ORS 655.510, benefits shall be delivered in a manner similar to that
provided for injured workers under the workersÂ’ compensation laws of this
state, except that:
     (1) No benefits, except medical services
and any occupational training or rehabilitation services provided by the
Department of Corrections, shall accrue to the inmate until the date of release
from confinement and shall be based upon the condition of the inmate at that
time.
     (2) Benefits shall be discontinued during
any subsequent period of reconfinement in a penal institution.
     (3) Costs of rehabilitation services to
inmates with disabilities shall be paid out of the Insurance Fund established
under ORS 278.425 in an amount approved by the Oregon Department of
Administrative Services, which shall be the reasonable and necessary cost of
such services.
     (4) Medical services when the inmate is
confined in a Department of Corrections facility shall be those provided by the
Department of Corrections. After release, medical services shall be paid only
if necessary to the process of recovery and as prescribed by the attending
practitioner. No medical services may be paid after the attending practitioner
has determined that the inmate is medically stationary other than for
reasonable, periodic repair or replacement of prosthetic appliances. The
department, by rule, may require that medical and rehabilitation services after
release must be provided directly by the state or its contracted managed care
organization. [1963 c.527 §3; 1991 c.566 §8; 1995 c.384 §20; 2007 c.70 §284]
     655.520
Filing claim for benefits; rules; initial award; limitations. (1) Claims for entitlement to benefits under
ORS 655.505 to 655.555 shall be filed by application with the Oregon Department
of Administrative Services as provided by rules adopted by the department, to
the extent not inconsistent with ORS 655.505 to 655.555. Such claims shall be
filed within the required periods after the injury even though actual benefits
may not accrue until release of the inmate from confinement. The department
may, before acting upon a claim, require further information for determination
of eligibility under ORS 655.505 to 655.555.
     (2) When a claim is approved, the
department shall make an initial estimate of award conditioned as provided in
ORS 655.515. Upon release of the inmate from confinement, the inmate shall
apply for an award and the department shall reaffirm or modify its initial
award in a manner appropriate to the condition of the inmate upon release.
     (3) The rights to benefits under ORS
655.505 to 655.555 shall be barred unless written claim is filed with the
department within 90 days after the injury, or if death results therefrom,
within 90 days after death. However, if death occurs more than one year after
the injury, the right shall be barred unless prior written claim based on the
injury has been timely filed. The inmate must make written application for an
award no later than 180 days following the release of the inmate from
confinement. The requirements of this subsection may be waived by the
department on the ground that, for good and sufficient reason, the claim could
not be filed on time. [1963 c.527 §5; 1965 c.285 §79d; 1991 c.566 §9; 1995
c.384 §21]
     655.525
Procedure for review of claims.
Except as otherwise provided by rule of the Oregon Department of Administrative
Services, an inmate or the beneficiary of the inmate may obtain review of
action taken on the claim as provided in ORS 656.283 to 656.304. [1963 c.527 §6;
1965 c.285 §79e; 1983 c.740 §241a; 1995 c.384 §22]
     655.530
Assignment of benefits under ORS 655.505 to 655.555. No benefits payable under ORS 655.505 to
655.555 are subject to assignment prior to their receipt by the person entitled
thereto, nor shall they pass by operation of law. These benefits and the right
to receive them are also exempt from seizure on execution, attachment or
garnishment, or by the process of any court. [1963 c.527 §7]
     655.535
Charging claims costs.
Claims payments and administrative costs of the Oregon Department of
Administrative Services shall be charged by the department to the Department of
Corrections pursuant to ORS 278.435. [1963 c.527 §§8,12; 1981 c.211 §1; 1987
c.320 §242; 1991 c.566 §10]
     655.540
Disposition and use of assessments. (1) The assessments paid to the Oregon Department of Administrative
Services by the Department of Corrections shall be credited as a component of
the Insurance Fund pursuant to ORS 278.425 and 278.435.
     (2) Funds credited to the inmate injury
component of the Insurance Fund for the purposes of ORS 655.505 to 655.555 may
be used to effect insurance or reinsurance with any authority or
instrumentality, public or private, or otherwise to distribute the liability
for compensation payable to persons entitled to recover under ORS 655.505 to
655.555. [1963 c.527 §§9,11; 1967 c.335 §54; 1967 c.637 §§25,25a; 1989 c.966 §66;
1991 c.566 §11]
     655.545
Liability for payment of benefits; precedence of expenses; priority among
claimants. Liability of the
Oregon Department of Administrative Services or the Insurance Fund for the
payment of benefits under ORS 655.505 to 655.555 is contingent upon and limited
by the availability of reserves in the inmate injury component of the Insurance
Fund. In the event that the reserves in the inmate injury component of the
Insurance Fund are not sufficient to meet the benefit payments and
administration cost for a given period, the expenses of the department shall
have precedence over all other claims. Thereafter, priority among claimants is
determined according to the time of filing of the claim. [1963 c.527 §10; 1991
c.566 §12]
     655.550
Assessment of
     655.555
Rules for administration of fund for inmate injuries. The Oregon Department of Administrative
Services, with the approval of the Department of Corrections, shall adopt rules
necessary to administer the inmate injury fund. The rules may provide for
procedures, benefits and coverage that vary from the workersÂ’ compensation
system. [1995 c.384 §24; 1997 c.851 §15]
BENEFITS FOR
INJURED OCCUPATIONALLY LIMITED TRAINEES
     655.605
Definitions for ORS 655.605 and 655.615. As used in ORS 655.605 and 655.615:
     (1) “Department” means the Department of
Human Services.
     (2) “Employer” means any person who
provides on-the-job training for trainees in cooperation with the department or
the Commission for the Blind even though no wages or salary is paid to the
trainee.
     (3) “Employment” means work experience
through nonremunerative, on-the-job training as a part of a special training
program of the department or the Commission for the Blind occurring on the
premises of the employer or at such other places as the department or the
Commission for the Blind and the employer may agree.
     (4) “Injury” means any personal injury
sustained by a trainee by accident, disease or infection arising out of and in
the course of employment, or death resulting proximately therefrom as provided
in ORS chapter 656.
     (5) “State Accident Insurance Fund Corporation”
and “corporation” mean the State Accident Insurance Fund Corporation created
under ORS 656.752.
     (6) “Trainee” or “client” means an
occupationally limited person who is participating in a special training or
evaluation program of the department or the Commission for the Blind in which
the trainee is enrolled. [1971 c.581 §1; 1973 c.429 §1; 1979 c.814 §5; 1981
c.184 §1; 1989 c.224 §123; 2001 c.900 §213]
     655.615
Payment of benefits to injured occupationally limited trainees. (1) All clients participating in a work
evaluation or work experience program of the Department of Human Services are
considered as workers subject to ORS chapter 656 for purposes of this section.
     (2) The department shall submit a written
statement to the State Accident Insurance Fund Corporation that includes a
description of the work to be performed by such clients.
     (3) Upon receiving the written statement,
the corporation may fix assumed wage rates for the clients enrolled in the work
evaluation or work experience program, without regard to ORS chapter 652, ORS
653.010 to 653.545 or 653.991, which may be used only for purposes of
computations under ORS chapter 656.
     (4) The department shall maintain a
separate list of the names of those enrolled in its work evaluation or work experience
program; and shall, upon request, furnish or make such list available to the
corporation. Clients covered under this section are entitled to the benefits of
ORS chapter 656 and they are entitled to such benefits if injured as provided
in ORS 656.156 and 656.202 while performing any duties arising out of and in
the course of their participation in the work evaluation or work experience
program, provided the duties being performed are among those described in the
written statement referred to in subsection (2) of this section.
     (5) The filing of claims for benefits
under this section is the exclusive remedy of a trainee or the beneficiary of
the trainee for injuries compensable under ORS chapter 656 against the state,
its political subdivisions, its officers and employees, or the person who
provides on-the-job training or job evaluation services for the injured client,
regardless of negligence except that the exclusive remedy provisions shall not
apply in the case of suits brought under the provisions of ORS 656.576 to
656.596 against third parties. [1971 c.581 §2; 1981 c.184 §2; 1983 c.706 §1]
     655.990 [Amended by 1965 c.285 §86; 1967 c.359 §698;
renumbered as part of 652.990]
_______________
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