Workers' Compensation -- Important new law presumes that alcohol or controlled substance is proximate cause of injury to workers' compensation claimant.

On January 8, 2001, Governor Robert Taft signed Am. Sub. H.B. No. 122, which amended Ohio Revised Code Section 4123.54 to create a rebuttable presumption that the proximate cause of an injury to an employee, who, through a blood, breath, or urine test, tests positive for the use of alcohol or a controlled substance not prescribed by a physician, is the alcohol or controlled substance. The law takes effect on April 8, 2001.

The presumption attaches to the results of a test for alcohol, provided the test is administered within 8 hours of the injury, and the alcohol levels are equal to or higher than the levels applicable to driving under the influence of alcohol. The presumption attached to the results of a test for a controlled substance, provided the appropriate test is administered within 32 hours of the injury, and exceeds certain statutory minimum levels. Among the controlled substances that may give rise to the rebuttable presumption are amphetamines, marijuana, cocaine, opiates, and barbituates.

IMPORTANT: To take advantage of this new law, an employer must give its employee prior notice that the results of a blood, breath, or urine test may affect the employee's eligibility for workers' compensation and benefits by creating a rebuttable presumption that the proximate cause of his or her injury is the alcohol or controlled substance. The employer must also give its employee notice that his or her refusal to submit to the chemical test will also result in that rebuttable presumption.


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