January 13, 2025

Can You Get Workers’ Compensation for Mental Health?

Category: Workers Compensation

Author: Matthew T. Hurm, Esq.

Short Answer: Probably not. Yet.

According to the World Health Organization, 15% of working-age adults suffer from a mental health disorder and 12 billion working days are lost due to depression or anxiety every year, costing $1 trillion in productivity. Fifty years ago, most states only provided mental health compensation for psychological injuries caused directly by a physical injury. Thus, depression and anxiety would not be covered by workers’ compensation unless it was directly caused by a broken bone, torn rotator cuff, or other physical injury. This rule has left millions of workers without coverage for their work-caused depression, anxiety, and other mental health conditions.

Reform has Not Fully Reached Ohio Yet

Twenty-nine states have expanded their workers’ compensation coverage to include mental health issues like depression and anxiety regardless of any physical injury. States like Mississippi, Tennessee, and Indiana all protect workers who develop depression and anxiety at a high-stress job. However, here in Ohio where Hurm Law Firm is located, workers suffering from mental health conditions still need to tie the condition’s development with a physical injury from work for the state’s workers’ compensation system to cover it. That said, a small amount of hope arrived for workers suffering from mental health issues with the passage of House Bill 308.

Coverage for First Responders

Ohio House Bill 308 created a presumption that a first responder who suffers from Post Traumatic Stress (that is work-related) is therefore covered by the workers’ compensation system. The law became effective April 12, 2021. Sadly, one major flaw with the bill was that it was not paid for through the normal workers’ compensation system. Instead, the State created a new fund to cover these costs. And the state has provided a very insufficient amount of funding for this coverage. 

In March of 2022, a mere $320,821 was provided for this fund to cover PTSD for first responders. According to a Harvard study, police officers develop PTSD at rates ranging from 6% to 32% and firefighters at rates ranging from 17% to 32%. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the State of Ohio has 25,992 sworn police officers and according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Ohio has 18,790 firefighters. Using the law number for PTSD rates from the Harvard study, Ohio has 4,754 first responders with PTSD. And these numbers do not include thousands of EMS and other first responders. Yet, even with these incomplete numbers, the $320,821 in funding gives each Ohio first responder with PTSD only $67 annually for treatment for their condition. That would not cover one psychiatrist visit. Needless to say, Ohio has some unfinished work to do in covering and paying for mental health coverage caused by work.

What To Do If You Have a Mental Health Condition Caused by Work.

The first thing to do when you suffer a work injury, be it physical or mental, is to get a free consultation from a workers’ compensation attorney. It’s free, it’s fast, and it’s vitally important that you protect yourself and your career. To schedule your free consultation, Facetime Hurm Law Firm at (216) 860-1922.

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