All Roll Calls
Yes: 62 • No: 0
NevadaSB31783rd Regular Session (2025)SenateWALLET
AN ACT relating to industrial insurance; revising certain requirements for an insurer or third-party administrator to maintain a physical office in this State; revising the circumstances under which the Administrator of the Division of Industrial Relations of the Department of Business and Industry may conduct certain inspections; revising provisions relating to the administration of certain claims; revising provisions relating to the calculation of certain premium costs; revising provisions relating to certain administrators; revising provisions relating to certain audits; revising provisions relating to certain subsequent injury accounts; authorizing the Administrator to adopt regulations relating to physician assistants; requiring the Administrator to adopt a certain formulary; revising provisions relating to an insurer's list of certain physicians and chiropractic physicians; establishing and revising various requirements for certain hearings relating to industrial insurance claims; revising provisions governing an injury or disease that is caused by stress; revising provisions governing motions to stay certain decisions and petitions for judicial review; revising requirements for payments for a period of temporary partial disability; revising the circumstances under which the Administrator may impose certain administrative fines; repealing provisions governing certain appeals and certain determinations of a percentage of disability; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.
Sponsored By: SkipDeputy Majority Whip Daly (Democratic)
Signed by Governor
BDR 53-625
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
20 provisions identified: 5 benefits, 1 costs, 14 mixed.
Bigger penalties; cash to injured workers
If the Administrator finds certain violations, the responsible party must pay you a penalty within 15 days. Most penalties to claimants range from $17,000 to $120,000. If the only issue is a small or up‑to‑14‑day late payment, the penalty is $3,000. The Administrator must also fine violators: $1,500 for an initial listed violation and $15,000 for later ones; other violations are capped at $375, $750, $1,500, and then $3,000. Two or more fines of $1,000+ in a year can lead to loss of a self‑insurance or administrator certificate after a hearing.
Uninsured employers must repay all costs
If you did not carry required workers’ comp coverage, you owe the Uninsured Employers’ Claim Account for all payments made for your worker. You must repay benefits, administrative costs, attorney’s fees, and accrued interest. The Division can recover by civil action or summary judgment, and the payments are presumed proper.
Wage cap for public employers’ premiums
For State and local public employers, the amount counted per worker in a policy year is capped at $36,000. A public employer may instead choose a cap equal to 12 times the maximum average monthly wage set each year by the Administrator. The Administrator sets that maximum by January 1 each year. This changes how premiums are calculated for public employers.
Help for workers hurt by uninsured bosses
You can get paid from the Uninsured Employers’ Claim Account if you were hired in Nevada or regularly work here and got an occupational disease here, or while on a temporary assignment outside Nevada for up to 12 months. You must file with the Division, assign your subrogation rights to the Division, and if the disease started outside Nevada, you must have been denied workers’ comp there. The Division quickly checks coverage (within 30 days), assigns the claim to a single designated administrator chosen by competitive bid, and authorizes payment when costs are shown. The administrator must tell you and the employer if it accepts or denies the claim. You have 30 days to appeal a claim‑assignment decision and 70 days to appeal an acceptance or denial.
Stress injury coverage for first responders
A mental injury from extreme stress is work‑related for first responders who directly witness death or grievous harm in a violent event, if proved under the law. State employees who respond to mass‑casualty incidents can also qualify. Agencies that employ first responders must provide mental‑health education and training. Insurers must keep a list of mental‑health providers and update it yearly; counties with 100,000+ people must have at least 12 providers on the list.
Bigger, updated doctor lists for workers
Insurers must keep larger, specialty‑based lists of doctors and chiropractors, and file updates each year between September 1 and October 1. In counties with 100,000+ people, listed providers must have an active practice and a physical office in that county. Starting September 1, 2026, insurers may audit and remove providers every three years and must refile by October 1. The Administrator sets a uniform, easily searchable format and cannot force use of a specific proprietary platform.
Drug formulary and generic prescribing rules
Doctors and advanced nurses must prescribe a generic drug when it is therapeutically the same, unless it would not help you or costs more. Insurers do not automatically pay for drugs that are not approved or are missing from the workers’ comp formulary. Your doctor can ask the insurer to approve a non‑formulary drug. If the insurer denies it, you or your representative can appeal to a hearings officer.
Faster payments, 2025 cutoff for injury account
When the Board orders a payment from the Subsequent Injury Account, the State Treasurer must pay within 14 days. The Administrator must review account claims and recommend action within 30 days. The account covers only subsequent injuries, disabilities, or deaths that happened on or before September 30, 2025.
Local access to claim files and adjusters
You can inspect and copy your claim file in Nevada or electronically. For open claims, copies must be ready within 24 hours during business hours; for closed claims, within 14 days. Insurers must keep a toll‑free line and have in‑state office access or a legal representative’s office. If your claim is handled from outside Nevada, a licensed adjuster must be available live 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Nevada time on weekdays unless there is an in‑state office. Remote administration is allowed if records are kept in Nevada or in accurate electronic form. Self‑insured employers must administer in Nevada unless they and affiliates report 30,000+ Nevada employees; third‑party administrators must hold a state certificate and keep an office in Nevada (directly or through a legal representative).
New drug list and treatment rules for workers
The law adopts the ODG drug formulary for outpatient workers’ comp drugs, with emergency and inpatient care exempt. The Administrator must post and keep the formulary up to date and adopt it by July 1, 2027. A transition rule lets insurers pay for drugs dispensed after July 1, 2027 if the injury and original prescription were between January 1 and July 1, 2027, through January 1, 2028. Your doctor may delegate routine follow‑up to a supervised physician assistant, but only with your informed consent and under Nevada practice standards. If an insurer denies a bill as unrelated to your injury, it must send you the bill, the denial, the amount you may owe, and a hearing request form.
Rules to close or reopen claims
Insurers must mail a closure notice that explains what closing means and your appeal rights. A claim can be closed early if total medical pay is under $800 in the first 12 months; you also get a 6‑month warning if care stays under $800. That notice must say if a permanent partial disability exam is set, or why none is set. If you do not appeal that low‑cost closure or you lose the appeal, you cannot reopen it later. To reopen within 1 year, you need medical proof of an objective change and clear evidence the original injury is the main cause. After 1 year, the insurer must reopen if a doctor certifies a change that mainly stems from the original injury and it would raise or rearrange benefits. If you retired or left work for reasons not tied to the injury before reopening, you cannot get vocational rehab or temporary total disability after reopening.
Partial disability pay and jail time
If your post‑injury wage is less than your temporary total disability pay, you get the difference as partial disability pay, for up to 24 months. The insurer must pay or issue a decision within 14 working days after getting your claim. You do not get partial disability pay while incarcerated. If you are released during that period and a doctor or chiropractor certifies you are temporarily partially disabled, you can receive the benefits.
New assessment and audit rules for self-insured groups
Member assessments must be calculated by a licensed rate service organization using each member’s premium class and individual experience. With the Commissioner’s approval, an association may instead use at least five years of the member’s experience to smooth assessments. Each association must audit every member’s payroll at least yearly to verify classifications, payroll dollars, and the correct assessment, and the association must pay audit costs. The Commissioner may require a summary report of the audits.
Tougher fines, but fixes for minor errors
For small clerical violations that do not harm injured workers, the Administrator may issue a notice of correction and combine similar minor errors into one finding. If an insurer underpays an assessment by misreporting claims costs or premiums, the Administrator may fine up to 2 times the underpaid amount. If the Fraud Control Unit declines prosecution after a violation is found, the Administrator must impose an administrative fine up to $15,000. The Administrator may collect administrative fines or benefit penalties from the bond required by NRS 683A.0857.
Fairer workers’ comp hearings and appeals
Hearing and appeals officers must meet a code of conduct and qualification rules, with required initial and ongoing training. The Hearings Division must post a public calendar and publish a yearly report that shows, by insurer and TPA, how cases were decided and which benefits were denied. To do discovery in an appeal, a party must first file a motion with the proposed questions, any witnesses, and a short summary of expected testimony. The other side has 5 days to oppose, and the moving party does not get a reply.
More time and clearer hearing steps
Insurers must give hearing‑request forms for free when you ask. You have 70 days after the insurer mails or electronically sends a decision to request a hearing, or you may appeal if the insurer fails to respond in 30 days. The 70‑day clock pauses if the insurer cannot prove it sent the decision, and you can get 90 more days if you or a close family member has a terminal illness or a death occurs. You can be excused for filing late if you prove you did not get the decision and the forms. Claimants and employers must tell the insurer when an address changes. Appeals officers must set regular appeals within 90 days (30 days’ notice) and contested claims within 60 days (notice within 10 days).
Appeals, court deadlines, and discovery rules
Parties can agree to skip a hearing officer and go straight to an appeals officer; some claims may go directly without agreement. Filing an appeal does not stop a decision; a stay requires a motion and proof you likely win, you face irreparable harm, and the other side does not. A court petition must be filed within 30 days after the appeals decision, with a copy of that decision attached. For occupational diseases, you must file your claim on time and get a final appeals decision before going to court. Appeals officers can allow discovery like in civil court for good cause, but not Rule 36 admissions; hearing officers have limited discovery. After a claim starts and a merits hearing is available, either side may send written questions and take depositions. Two statutes (NRS 616C.305 and 617.459) are repealed.
Reopening rules and file-keeping for claims
After a claim is closed, the insurer may reopen it for medical investigation only if you file an application with a written request from your treating doctor or chiropractor and show good cause tied to your injury. An insurer may dispose of an eligible closed claim file one year after closure if no request to reopen was filed in that year.
When these workers’ comp changes apply
The act’s changes apply to any workers’ comp claim that is open, filed, or reopened on or after the date the law was signed. Many parts take effect upon passage for rulemaking, but some start later. Section 4.2 fully applies on October 1, 2026. Sections 9.5, 9.7, 15.5, and 32.7 fully apply on July 1, 2027.
Bond and surety changes for associations
Third‑party administrators that serve associations of self‑insured employers no longer must deposit a specific bond with the Commissioner. Associations still must meet other security rules. A surety can end future liability on an association bond with 90 days’ written notice to the Commissioner and the association, but it stays liable for obligations incurred before the termination date.
Sponsors & Cosponsors
Sponsor
SkipDeputy Majority Whip Daly
Democratic • Senate
Cosponsors
There are no cosponsors for this bill.
Roll Call Votes
House vote • 6/2/2025
Final Passage - Assembly (3rd Reprint)
Yes: 42 • No: 0
Senate vote • 5/27/2025
Final Passage - Senate (2nd Reprint)
Yes: 20 • No: 0
Actions Timeline
Chapter 503.
6/11/2025legislatureApproved by the Governor.
6/10/2025legislatureEnrolled and delivered to Governor.
6/6/2025legislatureTo enrollment.
6/4/2025SenateAssembly Amendment No. 937 concurred in.
6/2/2025SenateIn Senate.
6/2/2025SenateRead third time. Passed, as amended. Title approved, as amended. (Yeas: 42, Nays: None.) To Senate.
6/2/2025HouseTaken from General File. Placed on General File for next legislative day.
6/1/2025HouseFrom printer. To reengrossment. Reengrossed. Third reprint.
5/31/2025HouseRead second time. Amended. (Amend. No. 937.) To printer.
5/31/2025HousePlaced on Second Reading File.
5/31/2025HouseFrom committee: Amend, and do pass as amended.
5/31/2025HouseRead first time. Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor. To committee.
5/28/2025HouseIn Assembly.
5/28/2025HouseFrom printer. To re-engrossment. Re-engrossed. Second reprint. To Assembly.
5/28/2025SenateRead third time. Passed, as amended. Title approved, as amended. (Yeas: 20, Nays: None, Excused: 1.) To printer.
5/27/2025SenateReprinting dispensed with.
5/27/2025SenateRead third time. Amended. (Amend. No. 790.)
5/27/2025SenatePlaced on General File.
5/27/2025SenateFrom committee: Amend, and do pass as amended.
5/27/2025SenateFrom printer. To engrossment. Engrossed. First reprint. To committee.
4/24/2025SenateTaken from General File. Re-referred to Committee on Finance. Exemption effective. To printer.
4/21/2025SenateNotice of eligibility for exemption.
4/21/2025SenateRead second time. Amended. (Amend. No. 312.)
4/21/2025SenatePlaced on Second Reading File.
4/21/2025Senate
Bill Text
As Enrolled
As Introduced
Reprint 1
Reprint 2
Reprint 3
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