Apportionment SB08-241 New Law

Effective for all injuries happening after July 1, 2008 a recent law addresses the subject of apportionment. This is where the claimant has a prior impairment and then sustains further injury. The issue caused much litigation so hopefully the new statute will clarify matters. There was one case in Colorado where the apportionment applied to reducing even medical benefits. Imagine re-injuring yourself at a job and then someone saying we'll only pay for half of your medical care due to a prior work injury. Anyway that is gone now. Claimants receive temporary and medical benefits in full even where it is a re-injury or aggravation. But also apportionment still can occur for any permanent impairment if it existed at the time of the latest injury. At the Division of Workers Compensation website they are also working on new rules to implement the new law. For a general overview check it out here.