Lawmakers Balk at PTSD Compensability for First Responders

Wednesday, May 25, 2016 | 0

Ohio lawmakers are moving closer to approving legislation that would allow the use of medical marijuana for treating post-traumatic stress disorder.

At the same time, legislation is pending that would make first responders including police officers and firefighters eligible for workers’ compensation benefits if they suffer from PTSD in the absence of a physical injury.

The medical marijuana legislation, House Bill 523, was passed by the House on a 71-26 vote on May 10. It is now being revised and debated in the Senate, Cleveland.com reported. The bill would allow the use of medical marijuana for PTSD and about 20 other medical conditions, including pain that is “chronic, severe or intractable.”

But Senate Bill 5, which pertains to workers’ comp benefits for first responders with PTSD, appears to have stalled in the Senate Finance Committee. Fraternal Order of Police President Jay McDonald said lawmakers should put the workers’ comp provisions into the medical marijuana bill, which is fast-tracked for passage before the legislature’s summer break.

Police officers for years have lobbied the General Assembly to recognize post-traumatic stress disorder without an accompanying physical injury. Similar bills to make PTSD compensable on its own have passed the Senate at least three times but died in the House.