Bill > SB1861

This bill amends Tennessee law regarding workers' compensation, primarily by authorizing the chief administrative officer of the Bureau of Workers' Compensation to use funds from the "subsequent injury and vocational recovery fund" for various purposes, including the implementation and maintenance of a computer system for the bureau, costs associated with legal counsel defending claims against this fund, and providing vocational recovery assistance to eligible employees. The bill also makes several technical changes to the legal procedures within workers' compensation, such as changing references from "petition" to "file a motion with," requiring compliance with court orders instead of timely responses to petitions, and altering the terminology for requesting hearings to "petition for benefit determination." Additionally, it modifies the criteria for certain benefits by changing the requirement from a single physician's impairment rating to a total of impairment ratings from authorized treating physicians, ensuring these ratings are determined according to the AMA guides.