[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3114 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 3114
To provide benefits authorized under the Longshore and Harbor Workers'
Compensation Act to maritime workers who contract COVID-19, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 11, 2021
Mr. Mrvan (for himself and Mr. Scott of Virginia) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and
Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide benefits authorized under the Longshore and Harbor Workers'
Compensation Act to maritime workers who contract COVID-19, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Longshore and Harbor Workers' COVID-
19 Compensation Act of 2021''.
SEC. 2. CLAIMS RELATED TO COVID-19.
(a) In General.--A covered employee who receives a diagnosis of
COVID-19 or is subject to an order described in subsection (b)(2) and
who provides notice of or files a claim under the Longshore and Harbor
Workers' Compensation Act (33 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) relating to such
diagnosis or order shall be conclusively presumed to have an injury
arising out of or in the course of employment for the purpose of
compensation under the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act.
(b) Covered Employee.--In this Act, the term ``covered employee''
means an individual who, at any time during the period beginning
January 27, 2020, and ending on January 27, 2023, is an employee
engaged in maritime employment as defined in section 2 of the Longshore
and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (33 U.S.C. 902(3)) and who--
(1)(A) is diagnosed with COVID-19; and
(B) during a covered exposure period with respect to the
date of such diagnosis carried out duties which--
(i) required contact with members of the public,
co-workers, or other individuals associated with the
course of employment; or
(ii) included a risk of exposure to the novel
coronavirus; or
(2) is ordered not to return to work by the employee's
employer or by a local, State, or Federal agency because of
exposure, or the risk of exposure, to 1 or more individuals
diagnosed with COVID-19 in the workplace.
(c) Clarification of Maritime Employment.--For the purposes of
subsection (b), maritime employment does not include employment under--
(1) the Defense Base Act (42 U.S.C. 1651 et seq.);
(2) the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C.
1333(b)); and
(3) section 8171 of title 5, United States Code.
(d) Limitation.--This Act shall not apply with respect to a covered
employee who--
(1) provides notice or files a claim described in
subsection (a) on or before the date of enactment of this Act;
and
(2) is determined to be entitled to the compensation
described in subsection (a) or is awarded such compensation if
such determination or award is made on or before the date of
enactment of this Act.
(e) Denials on or Before the Date of Enactment.--Subsection (a)
shall apply with respect to a covered employee who is determined not to
be entitled to, or who is not awarded, compensation described in
subsection (a) if such determination or decision not to award such
compensation is made on or before the date of enactment of this Act.
(f) Exclusion.--The Secretary shall not consider any compensation
paid with respect to a notice or claim to which subsection (a) applies,
including disability compensation, death benefits, funeral and burial
expenses, and medical expenses, in calculating the annual assessments
under section 44(c)(2) of the Longshore and Harbor Workers'
Compensation Act (33 U.S.C. 944(c)(2)).
SEC. 3. REIMBURSEMENT.
(a) In General.--
(1) Entitlement.--An employer of a covered employee or the
employer's carrier shall be entitled to reimbursement pursuant
to this Act for any compensation paid with respect to a notice
or claim described in section 2(a), including disability
compensation, death benefits, funeral and burial expenses,
medical or other related costs for treatment and care, and
reasonable and necessary allocated claims expenses.
(2) Safety and health requirements.--To be entitled to
reimbursement under paragraph (1)--
(A) an employer shall be in compliance with all
applicable safety and health guidelines and standards
that are related to the prevention of occupational
exposure to the novel coronavirus, including such
guidelines and standards issued by the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration, State plans approved
under section 18 of the Occupational Safety and Health
Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 667), the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, and the National Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health; and
(B) a carrier--
(i) shall be a carrier for an employer that
is in compliance with subparagraph (A); and
(ii) shall not adjust the experience rating
or the annual premium of the employer based
upon the compensation paid by the carrier with
respect to a notice or claim described in
section 2(a).
(b) Reimbursement Procedures.--
(1) In general.--To receive reimbursement under subsection
(a), a claim for such reimbursement shall be submitted to the
Secretary of Labor--
(A) not earlier than the date on which a
compensation order (as described in section 19(e) of
the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (33
U.S.C. 919(e))) is issued that fixes entitlement to
benefits; or
(B) not later than one year after the final payment
of compensation to a covered employee pursuant to this
Act; and
(C) in accordance with a rule issued by the
Secretary that the Secretary determines to be similar
to the process established under part 61 of title 20,
Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the date
of enactment of this Act).
(2) Records.--An employer and the employer's carrier shall
make, keep, and preserve such records, make such reports, and
provide such information, as the Secretary of Labor determines
necessary or appropriate to carry out this Act.
(3) Final agency action.--The action of the Secretary in
allowing or denying reimbursement under this section shall be
the final Agency action with respect to such reimbursement.
(c) Appropriations.--
(1) In general.--A reimbursement under this section shall
be paid out of the Longshore COVID-19 Fund established in
section 45 of the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation
Act (in this Act, referred to as the ``Longshore COVID-19
Fund'').
(2) Funds.--In addition to amounts otherwise available,
there are authorized to be appropriated, and there are
appropriated, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise
appropriated, such sums as may be necessary to the Longshore
COVID-19 Fund for each reimbursement paid out of such Fund
under this section.
(d) Report.--Not later than 60 days after the end of each of fiscal
years 2021, 2022, and 2023, the Secretary of Labor shall submit to the
Committee on Education and Labor of the House of Representatives and
the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate,
an annual report enumerating--
(1) the number of claims filed pursuant to section 2(a);
(2) of such filed claims--
(A) the number and types of claims under the
Longshore and Harbor Workers Compensation Act (33
U.S.C. 901 et seq.) with respect to which the
presumption under section 2(a) is made;
(B) the number and types of such claims denied; and
(C) the number and types of such claims pending;
and
(3) the total number of claims for reimbursement and the
total amounts paid for such reimbursement from the Longshore
COVID-19 Fund under subsection (c)(1) for the fiscal year for
which the report is being submitted.
(e) Regulations.--The Secretary of Labor may promulgate such
regulations as may be necessary to carry out this Act.
(f) Definitions.--In this Act:
(1) Covered exposure period.--The term ``covered exposure
period'' with respect to the date of a diagnosis described in
section 2(b)(1)(A), means the period of days--
(A) ending on the date of such diagnosis; and
(B) equal to the maximum number of days that the
Secretary of Labor, with the concurrence of the
Director of the National Institute of Occupational
Safety and Health, determines could occur between an
exposure to the novel coronavirus and a diagnosis of
COVID-19 resulting from such exposure.
(2) LHWCA terms.--The terms ``carrier'', ``compensation'',
``employee'', and ``employer'' have the meanings given the
terms in section 2 of the Longshore and Harbor Workers'
Compensation Act (33 U.S.C. 902).
(3) Novel coronavirus.--The term ``novel coronavirus''
means SARS-CoV-2, a variant of SARS-CoV-2, or any other
coronavirus declared to be a pandemic by public health
authorities.
SEC. 4. LONGSHORE COVID-19 FUND.
The Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (33 U.S.C. 901
et seq.) is amended by adding after section 44 the following:
``SEC. 45. LONGSHORE COVID-19 FUND.
``(a) In General.--There is established in the Treasury of the
United States the Longshore COVID-19 Fund (in this section, referred to
as the `Fund'), which consists of sums that are appropriated to the
Fund under section 3(c) of the Longshore and Harbor Workers' COVID-19
Compensation Act of 2021.
``(b) Expenditures.--Amounts in the Fund shall be available for the
reimbursement of an employer or the employer's carrier for compensation
payments and expenses approved under section 3 of the Longshore and
Harbor Workers' COVID-19 Compensation Act of 2021, including disability
compensation, death benefits, funeral and burial expenses, medical or
other related costs for treatment and care, and reasonable and
necessary allocated claims expenses paid under this Act when
reimbursement is required under section 3 of the Longshore and Harbor
Workers' COVID-19 Compensation Act of 2021, subject to any limitations
in such section.''.
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