South Carolina General Assembly
104th Session, 1981-1982

Bill 643

                    Current Status

Bill Number:               643
Ratification Number:       371
Act Number                 314
Introducing Body:          Senate
Subject:                   Relating to reimbursement from the
                           Second Injury Fund
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(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

(A314, R371, S643)

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 42-9-410, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO REIMBURSEMENT FROM THE SECOND INJURY FUND, SO AS TO SHIFT THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR ESTABLISHING PRIOR KNOWLEDGE OF A PREEXISTING PHYSICAL IMPAIRMENT FROM THE EMPLOYEE TO THE EMPLOYER; AND TO AMEND SECTION 42-9-400, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO THE SAME SUBJECT, SO AS TO DELETE THE REQUIREMENT THAT WRITTEN RECORDS MUST BE FILED WITH THE INDUSTRIAL COMMISSION AND THE SECOND INJURY FUND, WHEN A CLAIM IS MADE FOR REIMBURSEMENT, IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH THAT THE EMPLOYER HAD KNOWLEDGE OF THE PERMANENT PHYSICAL IMPAIRMENT AT THE TIME THE EMPLOYEE WAS HIRED OR AT THE TIME THE EMPLOYEE WAS RETAINED IN EMPLOYMENT AFTER THE EMPLOYER ACQUIRED SUCH KNOWLEDGE.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

Additional benefits from second injury fund

Section 1. Subsection (d) of Section 42-9-410 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"(d) In order to receive additional benefits from the Second Injury Fund as permitted by Section 42-9-150 and 42-9-170, the employer shall establish that he had notice of the employee's preexisting permanent physical impairment prior to the time of the subsequent injury by accident, unless the employer can establish that the employee had no knowledge of such preexisting impairment."

Section 1A. Section 42-9-400 (c) is amended to read:

"(c) In order to qualify under this section for reimbursement from the Second Injury Fund, the employer must establish when claim is made for reimbursement thereunder, that the employer had knowledge of the permanent physical impairment at the time that the employee was hired, or at the time the employee was retained in employment after the employer acquired such knowledge. Provided, however, the employer may qualify for reimbursement hereunder upon proof that he did not have prior knowledge of the employee's preexisting physical impairment because the existence of such condition was concealed by the employee or was unknown to the employee."

Time effective

Section 2. This act shall take effect upon the approval by the Governor.