Relates to claims for mental injury premised upon extraordinary work-related stress incurred at work

Stronger mental injury protections for workers

New York’s Workers’ Compensation Board cannot deny qualifying mental injury claims just because the stress was not greater than normal workplace stress. One protection covers eligible police officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, other certified emergency medical providers, and emergency dispatchers. Their claims must involve extraordinary work stress during a work-related emergency. A second protection covers employees claiming post-traumatic stress disorder, acute stress disorder, or major depressive disorder. Medical evidence must link the disorder to extraordinary stress from distinct work events directly tied to employment while performing job duties. Evidence must follow the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders criteria in effect on the accident date, or Board-adopted criteria. Board-adopted criteria cannot be stricter than the current or immediately preceding manual version. Neither protection applies to mental injuries caused by work-related physical injuries, and approval is not automatic. These rules take effect in the same manner and on the same date as the related 2024 chapter: its 180th day after becoming law.