Vermont Delays New Workers Comp Rehab Rules Temporarily

Christina Cole

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Vermont Labor Department has delayed plans to change the way injured workers are evaluated for workers' comp claims.

Stephen Monahan, director of the Workers Compensation and Safety Division, on Wednesday asked the Legislature's Administrative Rules Committee to delay the consideration of new rules which were on the panel's agenda that afternoon. The section of the new rules that need to be clarified further deal with the way the state assesses the injuries that workers suffer on the job, Monahan said.

"Unfortunately, I have just learned that the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation needs to obtain legislative authority to bill for these services, and since such authority cannot be sought and obtained until the new Legislature is in session, it is necessary for the department to develop an interim proposal for these rules,'' said a memo Monahan wrote to committee chairman Sen. Mark McDonald, D-Orange, and Vice Chairman Rep. Clinton Martin, D-Springfield.

Monahan said his office would have a new set of proposed rules prepared for the committee to consider at its next meeting, scheduled for Jan. 11. "We expect to be ready,'' Monahan said.