This site will look much better in a browser that supports web standards, but it is accessible to any browser or Internet device.

WorkSafeBC

regulation and policy banner

Policy Changes Concerning The Assessment Of Permanent Psychological Disability

2001/11/26-01

THE WORKERS' COMPENSATION BOARD OF BRITISH COLUMBIA

RESOLUTION OF THE PANEL OF ADMINISTRATORS

Re: Policy Changes Concerning The Assessment Of Permanent Psychological Disability

WHEREAS:

Pursuant to Section 82 of the Workers Compensation Act, RSBC 1996, Chapter 492 and amendments thereto ("Act") the Panel of Administrators ("Panel") must approve and superintend the policies and direction of the Workers' Compensation Board ("Board"), including policies respecting compensation, assessment, rehabilitation and occupational safety and health, and must review and approve the operating policies of the Board;

AND WHEREAS:

Section 23(1) of the Act provides that where permanent partial disability results from a compensable injury, the impairment of earning capacity must be estimated from the nature and degree of the injury;

AND WHEREAS:

Section 23(2) of the Act authorizes the Board to compile a rating schedule of percentages of impairment of earning capacity for specified injuries or mutilations which may be used as a guide in determining the compensation payable in permanent disability cases;

AND WHEREAS:

The Board has adopted the Permanent Disability Evaluation Schedule ("PDES") found in Appendix 4 to the Rehabilitation Services and Claims Manual ("RS&CM") under section 23(2) of the Act;

AND WHEREAS

By resolution 98/04/23-06 dated April 23, 1998, and entitled "RE: Interim Policy Changes Concerning The Assessment Of Permanent Psychological Disability", the Panel adopted as interim policy, a Table for the assessment of psychological impairment as part of the PDES as well as a process to review the application of policy to individual cases and to consider what the final policy recommendations on assessing permanent psychological disabilities should be;

AND WHEREAS:

By resolution 2000/04/28-02, effective May 17, 2000, the Panel extended the interim policy to June 30, 2001, by which time final recommendations were to be made to the Panel;

AND WHEREAS

By resolution 2001/06/19-02, effective June 29, 2001, the Panel extended the interim policy to December 31, 2001 by which time final recommendations were to be made to the Panel;

AND WHEREAS

The Psychological Disability Committee has made its final recommendations to the Panel;


THE PANEL OF ADMINISTRATORS RESOLVES THAT:

    1. Appendix 1 to this resolution is adopted as part of the PDES in Appendix 4 of the RS&CM for determining the percentage of disability resulting from psychological impairment.
    2. Policy item #38.10 of the RS&CM, attached as Appendix 2, is amended in accordance with the procedure for assessing a permanent disability pension for psychological impairment.
    3. Policy items #22.33, #39.00, #39.50, #96.30 and #97.40 of the RS&CM, attached as Appendix 2, are amended to provide consistency with amendments to policy item #38.10.
    4. Policy item #22.33 is also amended to clarify that chronic pain is not assessed as a psychological impairment.
    5. The effective date of this policy is December 31, 2001.
    6. This resolution constitutes a policy decision of the Panel.


DATED at Richmond, British Columbia, December 14, 2001.

 

By the Workers' Compensation Board

 
  MAUREEN NICHOLLS, CHAIR
PANEL OF ADMINISTRATORS

Appendix 1 (PDF 43kb)

Get Acrobat Reader To view PDF documents you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your system. To obtain a copy of the free reader visit the Adobe web site.