Return to Work (Permanent Impairment Assessment) Amendment Bill 2022 (SA)

South Australia Return to Work (Permanent Impairment Assessment) Amendment Bill 2022 A Bill For An Act to amend the Return to Work Act 2014.

Contents Part 1—Preliminary 1 Short title 2 Commencement Part 2—Amendment of Return to Work Act 2014 3 Amendment of section 4—Interpretation 4 Amendment of section 22—Assessment of permanent impairment 5 Amendment of section 56—Lump sum payments—economic loss 6 Amendment of section 58—Lump sum payments—non-economic loss 7 Amendment of section 122—Powers and procedures on a referral Schedule 1—Transitional provisions 1 Interpretation 2 Application of amendments

The Parliament of South Australia enacts as follows: Part 1—Preliminary 1—Short title This Act may be cited as the Return to Work (Permanent Impairment Assessment) Amendment Act 2022. 2—Commencement This Act comes into operation on 1 January 2023.

Part 2—Amendment of Return to Work Act 2014 3—Amendment of section 4—Interpretation (1) Section 4(1), definition of trauma—delete "series of events" and substitute: the same series of events (2) Section 4—after subsection (7) insert: (7a) For the purposes of the definition of trauma in subsection (1), if there is more than 1 work injury, all the events forming the series of events need to be the exclusive causes of both or all of the injuries in order for the series of events to constitute the same trauma for both or all of the injuries. Example— If events A and B are the only causes of injury Y, and events A, B and C are the only causes of injury Z, event C is not also the cause of injury Y. Injury Y arises out of the series of events A:B, while injury Z arises out of the series of events A:B:C. The 2 series are not identical, so that the 2 injuries are not from the same trauma. Note— This subsection, combined with the definition of trauma as amended at the time that this subsection is enacted, adopts and applies the principle enunciated in the reasons of The Honourable Chief Justice Kourakis in Marrone v Employers Mutual Limited as an Agent for Workcover Corporation of South Australia [2013] SASCFC 67. 4—Amendment of section 22—Assessment of permanent impairment Section 22(8)(c)—delete paragraph (c) and substitute: (c) if a worker suffers 2 or more injuries arising from the same trauma, the injuries are to be assessed together and combined to determine the degree of impairment of the worker (using any principle set out in the Impairment Assessment Guidelines); 5—Amendment of section 56—Lump sum payments—economic loss Section 56(5)—delete subsection (5) and substitute: (5) If a worker suffers 2 or more work injuries arising from the same trauma, the injuries will be assessed together and combined to determine the degree of impairment of the worker (using any principle set out in the Impairment Assessment Guidelines). 6—Amendment of section 58—Lump sum payments—non-economic loss Section 58(6)(a)—delete paragraph (a) and substitute: (a) the injuries will be assessed together and combined to determine the degree of impairment of the worker (using any principle set out in the Impairment Assessment Guidelines). 7—Amendment of section 122—Powers and procedures on a referral Section 122(6)(d)—delete paragraph (d) and substitute: (d) if a worker suffers 2 or more injuries arising from the same trauma, the injuries are to be assessed together and combined to determine the degree of impairment of the worker (using any principle set out in the Impairment Assessment Guidelines);