§85A-120. Inquiry about compensation claims.
545 words·~2 min read·
/ok/title-85a-workers-compensation/85a-120A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
A. Except as otherwise provided by state or federal law and subject to the provisions of this section, an employer may inquire about previous workers' compensation claims paid to an employee while the employee was employed by a previous employer. If the employee fails to answer truthfully about any previous permanent partial disability awards made pursuant to workers' compensation claims, the employee shall be subject to discharge by the employer.
B. 1. All requests made to the Workers' Compensation Commission for information on workers' compensation claims involving a worker, including written inquiries about prior claims and requests to access a worker's compensation claim file, must be in writing, on a form prescribed by the Commission, and accompanied by a fee of One Dollar ($1.00) per search request, not to exceed One Dollar ($1.00) per claims record of a particular worker. The fee shall be deposited to the credit of the Workers' Compensation Commission Revolving Fund.
The form shall require identification of the person requesting the information, and the person for whom a search is being made if different from the requester. The form must contain an affidavit signed by the requester under penalty of perjury that the information sought is not requested for a purpose in violation of state or federal law. The form must be used by all repositories of archived Court claim files. All request forms shall be maintained by the Commission as a public record, together with a record of a worker's written authorization permitting a search indexed by the worker's Social Security number as required by Section 3113 of Title 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes.
The request forms and authorizations shall be indexed alphabetically by the last name of the worker.
2. This subsection shall not apply:
a. to requests for claims information made by a public
officer or by a public employee in the performance of
his or her duties on behalf of a governmental entity
or as may be allowed by law,
b. to requests for claims information made by an insurer,
self-insured employer, third-party claims
administrator, or a legal representative thereof, when
necessary to process or defend a workers' compensation
claim,
c. when a worker or the worker's representative requests
review of the worker's claims information,
d. when the disclosure is made for educational or
research purposes and in such a manner that the
disclosed information cannot be used to identify any
worker who is the subject of a claim,
e. to requests for claims information made by a health
care or rehabilitation provider or the provider's
legal representative when necessary to process payment
of health care or rehabilitation services rendered to
a worker, and
f. to requests for claims information made by an employer
or personnel service company, including but not
limited to an individual or entity, where the worker
executes a written authorization permitting the search
and designating the employer or personnel service
company as the worker's representative for that
purpose; however, nothing in this subparagraph shall
relieve the employer or personnel service company from
complying with the requirements of utilizing the form
set forth in paragraph 1 of this subsection. Added by Laws 2013, c. 208, § 163, eff. Feb. 1, 2014. Amended by Laws 2019, c. 476, § 40, emerg. eff. May 28, 2019.