CHAPTER 6. WORKER'S COMPENSATION: MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
IC 22-3-6
Chapter 6. Worker's Compensation: Miscellaneous Provisions
IC 22-3-6-1
Definitions; exemptions
Sec. 1. In IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6, unless the contextotherwise requires:
(a) "Employer" includes the state and any political subdivision,any municipal corporation within the state, any individual or thelegal representative of a deceased individual, firm, association,limited liability company, or corporation or the receiver or trustee ofthe same, using the services of another for pay. A parent corporationand its subsidiaries shall each be considered joint employers of thecorporation's, the parent's, or the subsidiaries' employees forpurposes of IC 22-3-2-6 and IC 22-3-3-31. Both a lessor and a lesseeof employees shall each be considered joint employers of theemployees provided by the lessor to the lessee for purposes ofIC 22-3-2-6 and IC 22-3-3-31. If the employer is insured, the termincludes the employer's insurer so far as applicable. However, theinclusion of an employer's insurer within this definition does notallow an employer's insurer to avoid payment for services renderedto an employee with the approval of the employer. The term alsoincludes an employer that provides on-the-job training under thefederal School to Work Opportunities Act (20 U.S.C. 6101 et seq.)to the extent set forth in IC 22-3-2-2.5. The term does not include anonprofit corporation that is recognized as tax exempt under Section501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (as defined in IC 6-3-1-11(a))to the extent the corporation enters into an independent contractoragreement with a person for the performance of youth coachingservices on a part-time basis.
(b) "Employee" means every person, including a minor, in theservice of another, under any contract of hire or apprenticeship,written or implied, except one whose employment is both casual andnot in the usual course of the trade, business, occupation, orprofession of the employer.
(1) An executive officer elected or appointed and empoweredin accordance with the charter and bylaws of a corporation,other than a municipal corporation or governmental subdivisionor a charitable, religious, educational, or other nonprofitcorporation, is an employee of the corporation under IC 22-3-2through IC 22-3-6. An officer of a corporation who is the soleofficer of the corporation is an employee of the corporationunder IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6, but may elect not to be anemployee of the corporation under IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6.If an officer makes this election, the officer must serve writtennotice of the election on the corporation's insurance carrier andthe board. An officer of a corporation who is the sole officer ofthe corporation may not be considered to be excluded as anemployee under IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6 until the notice isreceived by the insurance carrier and the board. (2) An executive officer of a municipal corporation or othergovernmental subdivision or of a charitable, religious,educational, or other nonprofit corporation may,notwithstanding any other provision of IC 22-3-2 throughIC 22-3-6, be brought within the coverage of its insurancecontract by the corporation by specifically including theexecutive officer in the contract of insurance. The election tobring the executive officer within the coverage shall continuefor the period the contract of insurance is in effect, and duringthis period, the executive officers thus brought within thecoverage of the insurance contract are employees of thecorporation under IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6.
(3) Any reference to an employee who has been injured, whenthe employee is dead, also includes the employee's legalrepresentatives, dependents, and other persons to whomcompensation may be payable.
(4) An owner of a sole proprietorship may elect to include theowner as an employee under IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6 if theowner is actually engaged in the proprietorship business. If theowner makes this election, the owner must serve upon theowner's insurance carrier and upon the board written notice ofthe election. No owner of a sole proprietorship may beconsidered an employee under IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6until the notice has been received. If the owner of a soleproprietorship is an independent contractor in the constructiontrades and does not make the election provided under thissubdivision, the owner must obtain an affidavit of exemptionunder IC 22-3-2-14.5.
(5) A partner in a partnership may elect to include the partneras an employee under IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6 if the partneris actually engaged in the partnership business. If a partnermakes this election, the partner must serve upon the partner'sinsurance carrier and upon the board written notice of theelection. No partner may be considered an employee underIC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6 until the notice has been received.If a partner in a partnership is an independent contractor in theconstruction trades and does not make the election providedunder this subdivision, the partner must obtain an affidavit ofexemption under IC 22-3-2-14.5.
(6) Real estate professionals are not employees under IC 22-3-2through IC 22-3-6 if:
(A) they are licensed real estate agents;
(B) substantially all their remuneration is directly related tosales volume and not the number of hours worked; and
(C) they have written agreements with real estate brokersstating that they are not to be treated as employees for taxpurposes.
(7) A person is an independent contractor in the constructiontrades and not an employee under IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6if the person is an independent contractor under the guidelines
of the United States Internal Revenue Service.
(8) An owner-operator that provides a motor vehicle and theservices of a driver under a written contract that is subject toIC 8-2.1-24-23, 45 IAC 16-1-13, or 49 CFR 376 to a motorcarrier is not an employee of the motor carrier for purposes ofIC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6. The owner-operator may elect tobe covered and have the owner-operator's drivers covered undera worker's compensation insurance policy or authorizedself-insurance that insures the motor carrier if theowner-operator pays the premiums as requested by the motorcarrier. An election by an owner-operator under this subdivisiondoes not terminate the independent contractor status of theowner-operator for any purpose other than the purpose of thissubdivision.
(9) A member or manager in a limited liability company mayelect to include the member or manager as an employee underIC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6 if the member or manager isactually engaged in the limited liability company business. If amember or manager makes this election, the member ormanager must serve upon the member's or manager's insurancecarrier and upon the board written notice of the election. Amember or manager may not be considered an employee underIC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6 until the notice has been received.
(10) An unpaid participant under the federal School to WorkOpportunities Act (20 U.S.C. 6101 et seq.) is an employee tothe extent set forth in IC 22-3-2-2.5.
(11) A person who enters into an independent contractoragreement with a nonprofit corporation that is recognized as taxexempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code(as defined in IC 6-3-1-11(a)) to perform youth coachingservices on a part-time basis is not an employee for purposes ofIC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6.
(c) "Minor" means an individual who has not reached seventeen(17) years of age.
(1) Unless otherwise provided in this subsection, a minoremployee shall be considered as being of full age for allpurposes of IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6.
(2) If the employee is a minor who, at the time of the accident,is employed, required, suffered, or permitted to work inviolation of IC 20-33-3-35, the amount of compensation anddeath benefits, as provided in IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6, shallbe double the amount which would otherwise be recoverable.The insurance carrier shall be liable on its policy for one-half(1/2) of the compensation or benefits that may be payable onaccount of the injury or death of the minor, and the employershall be liable for the other one-half (1/2) of the compensationor benefits. If the employee is a minor who is not less thansixteen (16) years of age and who has not reached seventeen(17) years of age and who at the time of the accident isemployed, suffered, or permitted to work at any occupation
which is not prohibited by law, this subdivision does not apply.
(3) A minor employee who, at the time of the accident, is astudent performing services for an employer as part of anapproved program under IC 20-37-2-7 shall be considered afull-time employee for the purpose of computing compensationfor permanent impairment under IC 22-3-3-10. The averageweekly wages for such a student shall be calculated as providedin subsection (d)(4).
(4) The rights and remedies granted in this subsection to aminor under IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6 on account ofpersonal injury or death by accident shall exclude all rights andremedies of the minor, the minor's parents, or the minor'spersonal representatives, dependents, or next of kin at commonlaw, statutory or otherwise, on account of the injury or death.This subsection does not apply to minors who have reachedseventeen (17) years of age.
(d) "Average weekly wages" means the earnings of the injuredemployee in the employment in which the employee was working atthe time of the injury during the period of fifty-two (52) weeksimmediately preceding the date of injury, divided by fifty-two (52),except as follows:
(1) If the injured employee lost seven (7) or more calendar daysduring this period, although not in the same week, then theearnings for the remainder of the fifty-two (52) weeks shall bedivided by the number of weeks and parts thereof remainingafter the time lost has been deducted.
(2) Where the employment prior to the injury extended over aperiod of less than fifty-two (52) weeks, the method of dividingthe earnings during that period by the number of weeks andparts thereof during which the employee earned wages shall befollowed, if results just and fair to both parties will be obtained.Where by reason of the shortness of the time during which theemployee has been in the employment of the employee'semployer or of the casual nature or terms of the employment itis impracticable to compute the average weekly wages, asdefined in this subsection, regard shall be had to the averageweekly amount which during the fifty-two (52) weeks previousto the injury was being earned by a person in the same gradeemployed at the same work by the same employer or, if there isno person so employed, by a person in the same grade employedin the same class of employment in the same district.
(3) Wherever allowances of any character made to an employeein lieu of wages are a specified part of the wage contract, theyshall be deemed a part of the employee's earnings.
(4) In computing the average weekly wages to be used incalculating an award for permanent impairment underIC 22-3-3-10 for a student employee in an approved trainingprogram under IC 20-37-2-7, the following formula shall beused. Calculate the product of:
(A) the student employee's hourly wage rate; multiplied by (B) forty (40) hours.
The result obtained is the amount of the average weekly wagesfor the student employee.
(e) "Injury" and "personal injury" mean only injury by accidentarising out of and in the course of the employment and do not includea disease in any form except as it results from the injury.
(f) "Billing review service" refers to a person or an entity thatreviews a medical service provider's bills or statements for thepurpose of determining pecuniary liability. The term includes anemployer's worker's compensation insurance carrier if the insurancecarrier performs such a review.
(g) "Billing review standard" means the data used by a billingreview service to determine pecuniary liability.
(h) "Community" means a geographic service area based on ZIPcode districts defined by the United States Postal Service accordingto the following groupings:
(1) The geographic service area served by ZIP codes with thefirst three (3) digits 463 and 464.
(2) The geographic service area served by ZIP codes with thefirst three (3) digits 465 and 466.
(3) The geographic service area served by ZIP codes with thefirst three (3) digits 467 and 468.
(4) The geographic service area served by ZIP codes with thefirst three (3) digits 469 and 479.
(5) The geographic service area served by ZIP codes with thefirst three (3) digits 460, 461 (except 46107), and 473.
(6) The geographic service area served by the 46107 ZIP codeand ZIP codes with the first three (3) digits 462.
(7) The geographic service area served by ZIP codes with thefirst three (3) digits 470, 471, 472, 474, and 478.
(8) The geographic service area served by ZIP codes with thefirst three (3) digits 475, 476, and 477.
(i) "Medical service provider" refers to a person or an entity thatprovides medical services, treatment, or supplies to an employeeunder IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6.
(j) "Pecuniary liability" means the responsibility of an employeror the employer's insurance carrier for the payment of the charges foreach specific service or product for human medical treatmentprovided under IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6 in a defined community,equal to or less than the charges made by medical service providersat the eightieth percentile in the same community for like services orproducts.
(Formerly: Acts 1929, c.172, s.73; Acts 1933, c.243, s.1; Acts 1955,c.337, s.1; Acts 1969, c.94, s.7.) As amended by Acts 1979, P.L.228,SEC.1; Acts 1981, P.L.199, SEC.2; P.L.37-1985, SEC.31;P.L.28-1988, SEC.47; P.L.95-1988, SEC.11; P.L.106-1992, SEC.11;P.L.8-1993, SEC.282; P.L.75-1993, SEC.5; P.L.1-1994, SEC.110;P.L.110-1995, SEC.33; P.L.216-1995, SEC.4; P.L.2-1996, SEC.265;P.L.258-1997(ss), SEC.12; P.L.235-1999, SEC.5; P.L.31-2000,SEC.6; P.L.202-2001, SEC.7; P.L.1-2005, SEC.182; P.L.201-2005,
SEC.5; P.L.1-2006, SEC.339; P.L.180-2009, SEC.1.
IC 22-3-6-2
Mutual insurance associations and reciprocal or interinsuranceexchanges
Sec. 2. (a) For the purpose of complying with IC 22-3-5-1, groupsof employers are hereby authorized to form mutual insuranceassociations or reciprocal or interinsurance exchanges subject to suchreasonable conditions and restrictions as may be fixed by thedepartment of insurance.
(b) Membership in such mutual insurance associations orreciprocal or interinsurance exchanges so approved, together withevidence of the payment of premiums due, shall be evidence ofcompliance with IC 22-3-5-1.
(c) Subsection (a) does not apply to mutual insurance associationsand reciprocal or interinsurance exchanges formed and operating onor before January 1, 1991, which shall continue to operate subject tothe provisions of IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6 and to such reasonableconditions and restrictions as may be fixed by the worker'scompensation board.
(Formerly: Acts 1929, c.172, s.75.) As amended by P.L.144-1986,SEC.54; P.L.28-1988, SEC.48; P.L.170-1991, SEC.17.
IC 22-3-6-3
Compliance with former law
Sec. 3. Every employer who has complied with the requirementsof the provisions of Acts 1915, c.106, or the industrial board orworker's compensation board under that act, which compliance iseffective as of May 21, 1929, shall to the same extent be deemed tohave complied with the requirements of IC 22-3-2 through IC 22-3-6.
(Formerly: Acts 1929, c.172, s.76.) As amended by P.L.144-1986,SEC.55; P.L.1-2006, SEC.340.