Workers’ compensation: medical treatment.
AB 2098
California Bills
20250AB__209897AMD INTRODUCED 2026-02-18 AMENDED_ASSEMBLY 2026-03-09 AMENDED_ASSEMBLY 2026-03-26 2025 AB AMD Introduced by Assembly Member Kalra LEAD_AUTHOR ASSEMBLY Kalra
An act to amend
Section 132a of, and to add
Section 4600.03 to, the Labor Code, relating to workers’ compensation. workers’ compensation Workers’ compensation: medical treatment. Existing law establishes a workers’ compensation system, administered by the Administrative Director of the Division of Workers’ Compensation, to compensate an employee, as defined, for injuries that arise out of, and in the course of, employment. Existing law requires employers to provide medical, surgical, chiropractic, acupuncture, licensed clinical social worker, and hospital treatment reasonably required to cure or relieve the injured worker from the effects of the injury.
Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for an employer to discharge, threaten to discharge, or discriminate against, or for an insurer to advise, direct, or threaten an insured to discharge, an employee because they have filed or made known their intention to file a claim for compensation, or an application for adjudication, or because the employee has received a rating, award, or settlement, as specified. This bill would require an employee, when possible, to make a reasonable effort to
schedule treatment outside of work hours. The bill would require the employee, if the timing of the treatment is foreseeable, to provide notice if treatment occurs during work hours, as specified, and require the employer to provide this leave during work hours unless business necessity requires the treatment to occur at a different time or on a different day.
The bill would require that the leave taken by an employee pursuant to these provisions run concurrently with leave taken pursuant to the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of and the California Family Rights Act if the employee would have been eligible for that leave. If an employer denies an employee’s request to attend scheduled treatment, and the employer knows or should know that a business necessity does not require the treatment to occur at a different time or on a different day, the bill would make that denial a misdemeanor.
The bill would also make it a misdemeanor for an employer to discharge, threaten to discharge, or discriminate against an employee because the employee requested or took leave pursuant to these provisions. By creating new crimes, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would make other conforming changes. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
MAJORITY NO YES YES NO NO NO NO NO NO NO The people of the State of California do enact as follows: <caml:Num>SECTION 1.</caml:Num><caml:ActionLine action="IS_AMENDED" xlink:href="urn:caml:codes:LAB:caml#xpointer(%2Fcaml%3ALawDoc%2Fcaml%3ACode%2Fcaml%3ALawHeading%5B%40type%3D'DIVISION'%20and%20caml%3ANum%3D'4.'%5D%2Fcaml%3ALawHeading%5B%40type%3D'PART'%20and%20caml%3ANum%3D'2.'%5D%2Fcaml%3ALawHeading%5B%40type%3D'CHAPTER'%20and%20caml%3ANum%3D'2.'%5D%2Fcaml%3ALawHeading%5B%40type%3D'ARTICLE'%20and%20caml%3ANum%3D'2.'%5D%2Fcaml%3ALawSection%5Bcaml%3ANum%3D'4600.'%5D)" xlink:label="fractionType: LAW_SECTION" xlink:type="locator">Section of the <caml:DocName>Labor Code</caml:DocName> is amended to read:</caml:ActionLine><caml:Fragment><caml:LawSection id="id_4B352EE5-5455-451E-93AC-606A2A256781"><caml:Num>4600.</caml:Num><caml:LawSectionVersion id="id_EF144F9C-8A90-41C6-86ED-D2DB5426FDF0"><caml:Content><xhtml:p>(a)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>(1)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Medical, surgical, chiropractic, acupuncture, licensed clinical social worker, and hospital treatment, including nursing, medicines, medical and surgical supplies, crutches, and apparatuses, including orthotic and prosthetic devices and services, that is reasonably required to cure or relieve the injured worker from the effects of the worker’s injury shall be provided by the employer.
In the case of the employer’s neglect or refusal reasonably to do so, the employer is liable for the reasonable expense incurred by or on behalf of the employee in providing treatment.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(2)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>(A)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>When possible, an employee shall make a reasonable effort to
schedule treatment outside of regular work hours. A reasonable effort shall not require a worker to consequentially delay treatment.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(B)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>If the treatment occurs during working hours and if the timing of the treatment is foreseeable, the employee shall provide reasonable, advance notification to the employer.
If the timing of the treatment is unforeseeable, the employee shall provide notice of the treatment as soon as practicable.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(C)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>If an employee has requested leave during work hours for treatment pursuant to subparagraph (B), the employer shall allow the employee to take leave unless business necessity would require the treatment to occur at a different time or on a different day. “Business necessity” refers to the business necessity defense established by Barns v. Workers’ Comp.
Appeals Bd. (1989) 216 Cal.App.3d 524.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(D)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Leave taken by an employee pursuant to this
section shall run concurrently with leave taken pursuant to the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C.
Sec. 2601 et seq.), if the employee would have been eligible for that leave at the time leave was taken, and the Moore-Brown-Roberti Family Rights Act, commonly referred to as the California Family Rights Act (Sections 12945.2 and 19702.3 of the Government Code), if the employee would have been eligible for that leave at the time leave was taken.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(E)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>If an employer denies an employee’s request to attend scheduled treatment during regular work hours, except pursuant to subparagraph (C), the employer’s conduct constitutes a violation under the provisions of
Section 132a.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(b)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>As used in this division and notwithstanding any other law, medical treatment that is reasonably required to cure or relieve the injured worker from the effects of the worker’s injury means treatment that is based upon the guidelines adopted by the administrative director pursuant to
Section 5307.27.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(c)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Unless the employer or the employer’s insurer has established or contracted with a medical provider network as provided for in
Section 4616, after days from the date the injury is reported, the employee may be treated by a physician of the employee’s own choice or at a facility of the employee’s own choice within a reasonable geographic area. A chiropractor shall not be a treating physician after the employee has received the maximum number of chiropractic visits allowed by subdivision (
c) of
Section 4604.5.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(d)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>(1)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>If an employee has notified the employee’s employer in writing prior to the date of injury that the employee has a personal physician, the employee shall have the right to be treated by that physician from the date of injury if the employee has health care coverage for nonoccupational injuries or illnesses on the date of injury in a plan, policy, or fund as described in subdivisions (b), (c), and (
d) of
Section 4616.7.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(2)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>For purposes of paragraph (1), a personal physician shall meet all of the following conditions:</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(A)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Be the employee’s regular physician and surgeon, licensed pursuant to
Chapter 5 (commencing with
Section 2000) of Division of the Business and Professions Code.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(B)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Be the employee’s primary care physician and has previously directed the medical treatment of the employee, and who retains the employee’s medical records, including the employee’s medical history. “Personal physician” includes a medical group, if the medical group is a single corporation or partnership composed of licensed doctors of medicine or osteopathy, which operates an integrated multispecialty medical group providing comprehensive medical services predominantly for nonoccupational illnesses and injuries.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(C)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>The physician agrees to be predesignated.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(3)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>If the employee has health care coverage for nonoccupational injuries or illnesses on the date of injury in a health care service plan licensed pursuant to
Chapter 2.2 (commencing with
Section 1340) of Division of the Health and Safety Code, and the employer is notified pursuant to paragraph (1), all medical treatment, utilization review of medical treatment, access to medical treatment, and other medical treatment issues shall be governed by
Chapter 2.2 (commencing with
Section 1340) of Division of the Health and Safety Code. Disputes regarding the provision of medical treatment shall be resolved pursuant to
Article 5.55 (commencing with
Section 1374.30) of
Chapter 2.2 of Division of the Health and Safety Code.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(4)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>If the employee has health care coverage for nonoccupational injuries or illnesses on the date of injury in a group health insurance policy as described in
Section 4616.7, all medical treatment, utilization review of medical treatment, access to medical treatment, and other medical treatment issues shall be governed by the applicable provisions of the Insurance Code.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(5)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>The insurer may require prior authorization of any nonemergency treatment or diagnostic service and may conduct reasonably necessary utilization review pursuant to
Section 4610.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(6)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>An employee is entitled to all medically appropriate referrals by the personal physician to other physicians or medical providers within the nonoccupational health care plan. An employee is entitled to treatment by physicians or other medical providers outside of the nonoccupational health care plan pursuant to standards established in
Article 5 (commencing with
Section 1367) of
Chapter 2.2 of Division of the Health and Safety Code.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(e)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>(1)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>When at the request of the employer, the employer’s insurer, the administrative director, the appeals board, or a workers’ compensation administrative law judge, the employee submits to examination by a physician, the employee is entitled to receive, in addition to all other benefits herein provided, all reasonable expenses of transportation, meals, and lodging incident to reporting for the examination, together with one day of temporary disability indemnity for each day of wages lost in submitting to the examination.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(2)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Regardless of the date of injury, “reasonable expenses of transportation” includes mileage fees from the employee’s home to the place of the examination and back at the rate of twenty-one cents ($0.21) a mile or the mileage rate adopted by the Director of Human Resources pursuant to
Section of the Government Code, whichever is higher, plus any bridge tolls. The mileage and tolls shall be paid to the employee at the time the employee is given notification of the time and place of the examination.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(f)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>When at the request of the employer, the employer’s insurer, the administrative director, the appeals board, or a workers’ compensation administrative law judge, an employee submits to examination by a physician and the employee does not proficiently speak or understand the English language, the employee shall be entitled to the services of a qualified interpreter in accordance with conditions and a fee
schedule prescribed by the administrative director. These services shall be provided by the employer. For purposes of this section, “qualified interpreter” means a language interpreter certified, or deemed certified, pursuant to
Article 8 (commencing with
Section 11435.05) of
Chapter 4.5 of Part of Division of Title of, or
Section of, the Government Code.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(g)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>If the injured employee cannot effectively communicate with the employee’s treating physician because the employee cannot proficiently speak or understand the English language, the injured employee is entitled to the services of a qualified interpreter during medical treatment appointments. To be a qualified interpreter for purposes of medical treatment appointments, an interpreter is not required to meet the requirements of subdivision (f), but shall meet any requirements established by rule by the administrative director that are substantially similar to the requirements set forth in
Section 1367.04 of the Health and Safety Code. The administrative director shall adopt a fee
schedule for qualified interpreter fees in accordance with this section. Upon request of the injured employee, the employer or insurance carrier shall pay for interpreter services. An employer shall not be required to pay for the services of an interpreter who is not certified or is provisionally certified by the person conducting the medical treatment or examination unless either the employer consents in advance to the selection of the individual who provides the interpreting service or the injured worker requires interpreting service in a language other than the languages designated pursuant to
Section 11435.40 of the Government Code.</xhtml:p><xhtml:p>(h)<xhtml:span class="EnSpace"/>Home health care services shall be provided as medical treatment only if reasonably required to cure or relieve the injured employee from the effects of the employee’s injury and prescribed by a physician and surgeon licensed pursuant to
Chapter 5 (commencing with
Section 2000) of Division of the Business and Professions Code, and subject to
Section 5307.1 or 5307.8. The employer is not liable for home health care services that are provided more than days prior to the date of the employer’s receipt of the physician’s prescription.</xhtml:p></caml:Content></caml:LawSectionVersion></caml:LawSection></caml:Fragment></caml:BillSection>"?>
SECTION
Section 132a of the Labor Code is amended to read: 132a. (
a) It is the declared policy of this state that there should not be discrimination against workers who are injured in the course and scope of their employment.
(1) Any employer who discharges, or threatens to discharge, or in any manner discriminates against any employee because the employee has filed or made known their intention to file a claim for compensation with their employer or an application for adjudication, or because the employee has received a rating, award, or settlement, is guilty of a misdemeanor and the employee’s compensation shall be increased by one-half, but in no event more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), together with costs and expenses not in excess of two hundred fifty dollars ($250).
Any such employee shall also be entitled to reinstatement and reimbursement for lost wages and work benefits caused by the acts of the employer.
(2) Any insurer that advises, directs, or threatens an insured under penalty of cancellation or a raise in premium or for any other reason, to discharge an employee because the employee has filed or made known their intention to file a claim for compensation with their employer or an application for adjudication, or because the employee has received a rating, award, or settlement, is guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to the increased compensation and costs provided in paragraph (1).
(3) Any employer who discharges, or threatens to discharge, or in any manner discriminates against any employee because the employee testified or made known their intentions to testify in another employee’s case before the appeals board, is guilty of a misdemeanor, and the employee shall be entitled to reinstatement and reimbursement for lost wages and work benefits caused by the acts of the employer.
(4) Any insurer that advises, directs, or threatens an insured employer under penalty of cancellation or a raise in premium or for any other reason, to discharge or in any manner discriminate against an employee because the employee testified or made known their intention to testify in another employee’s case before the appeals board, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
(5) Any employer who discharges, or threatens to discharge, or in any manner discriminates against any employee because the employee requested or took leave pursuant to
Section 4600.03, is guilty of a misdemeanor, and the employee shall be entitled to reinstatement and reimbursement for lost wages and work benefits caused by the acts of the employer. Proceedings</p>"?> (
b) Proceedings for increased compensation as provided in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a), or for reinstatement and reimbursement for lost wages and work benefits, are to be instituted by filing an appropriate petition with the appeals board, but these proceedings may not be commenced more than one year from the discriminatory act or date of termination of the employee. The appeals board is vested with full power, authority, and jurisdiction to try and determine finally all matters specified in this
section subject only to judicial review, except that the appeals board shall have no jurisdiction to try and determine a misdemeanor charge. The appeals board may refer and any worker may complain of suspected violations of the criminal misdemeanor provisions of this
section to the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement, or directly to the office of the public prosecutor.
SEC.
Section 4600.03 is added to the Labor Code , to read: 4600.03. (
a) When possible, an employee shall make a reasonable effort to
schedule treatment pursuant to
Section 4600, outside of regular work hours. A reasonable effort shall not require a worker to consequentially delay treatment. (
b) If treatment pursuant to
Section occurs during working hours and if the timing of the treatment is foreseeable, the employee shall provide reasonable, advance notification to the employer. If the timing of the treatment is unforeseeable, the employee shall provide notice of the treatment as soon as practicable. (c)
(1) If an employee has requested leave during work hours for treatment pursuant to subdivision (b), the employer shall not deny the request unless business necessity would require the treatment to occur at a different time or on a different day.
(2) An employer who denies a request, and who knows or should know that business necessity does not require the treatment to occur at a different time or on a different day, is guilty of a misdemeanor. (
d) Leave taken by an employee pursuant to this
section shall run concurrently with leave taken pursuant to the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C.
Sec. 2601 et seq.), if the employee would have been eligible for that leave at the time leave was taken, and the Moore-Brown-Roberti Family Rights Act, commonly referred to as the California Family Rights Act (Sections 12945.2 and 19702.3 of the Government Code), if the employee would have been eligible for that leave at the time leave was taken. (
e) For purposes of this section, “business necessity” means an overriding legitimate business purpose such that denial of the request is necessary to the safe and efficient operation of the business, and for which there is no feasible alternative to denial of the request that would serve the business purpose.
SEC. 3. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section of
Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of