ENGROSSED
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 641
(By Senators Oliverio, Prezioso, McKenzie, Kessler, Edgell,
Bowman, Sharpe, Minard, Ross, Snyder and Unger)
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[Originating in the Committee on the Judiciary;
reported February 26, 2002.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section eight-a, article four, chapter
twenty-three of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to requiring the
occupational pneumoconiosis board to meet in various locations
around the state for the purpose of testing of occupational
pneumoconiosis claimants.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section eight-a, article four, chapter twenty-three of
the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 4. DISABILITY AND DEATH BENEFITS.
§23-4-8a. Occupational pneumoconiosis board -- Composition; term
of office; duties; quorum; remuneration.
The occupational pneumoconiosis board shall consist of five
licensed physicians who shall be appointed by the commissioner. No
person shall be appointed as a member of the board, or as a
consultant thereto, who has not by special study or experience, or
both, acquired special knowledge of pulmonary diseases. All
members of the occupational pneumoconiosis board shall be
physicians of good professional standing, admitted to practice
medicine and surgery in this state and two of them shall be
roentgenologists. One of the board shall be designated annually as
chairman by the commissioner. The term of office of each member of
the board shall be six years. The five members of the existing
board in office on the effective date of this section shall
continue to serve until their terms expire and until their
successors have been appointed and have qualified. Any member of
the board may be appointed to any number of terms. The function of
the board is to determine all medical questions relating to cases
of compensation for occupational pneumoconiosis under the direction
and supervision of the commissioner. Any three members of the
board constitute a quorum for the transaction of its business, if
at least one of the members present is a roentgenologist. The
commissioner shall, from time to time, fix the compensation to be
paid each member of the board and members are also entitled to
reasonable and necessary traveling and other expenses incurred
while actually engaged in the performance of their duties. In
fixing the compensation of board members, the commissioner shall
take into consideration the number of claimants a member of the board actually examines, the actual time spent by members in
discharging their duties and the recommendation of the compensation
programs performance council as to reasonable reimbursement per
unit of time expended based on comparative data for physicians
within the state in the same medical specialties.
The board shall meet, from time to time, in various locations
throughout the state for the purpose of testing claimants for
occupational pneumoconiosis. The locations should have adequate
medical facilities to accomplish the required testing on the
claimants and be selected to limit travel time for claimants.
Notice of the dates of the meetings shall be provided to
occupational pneumoconiosis claimants who desire to undergo testing
in alternative locations other than Charleston. The division shall
propose rules in accordance with section seven, article three,
chapter twenty-one-a of this code designed to ensure uniformity of
testing and results and to insure claimants receive notice
sufficiently in advance of testing times in order to make
arrangements to appear for testing.