AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 29, 2025

AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 9, 2025

AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 24, 2025

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

94

CHAPTER 298

Statutes of 2025

[ Approved by Governor October 3, 2025. Filed with Secretary of State October 3, 2025. ]

Introduced by Assembly Member Wallis

February 21, 2025

An act to add Section 4062.4 to the Labor Code, relating to workers’ compensation.

Vote: majority   Appropriation: no   Fiscal committee: yes   Local program: no

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

Existing law establishes a workers’ compensation system, administered by the Administrative Director of the Division of Workers’ Compensation, to compensate an employee for injuries arising out of and in the course of their employment. Existing law establishes procedures for the resolution of disputes regarding the compensability of an injury, including the use of a qualified medical evaluator (QME) to perform a comprehensive medical-legal evaluation to address all contested medical issues arising from all injuries reported in a claim. Existing law requires all communications with a panel QME before a medical evaluation to be in writing served on the opposing party 20 days in advance of the evaluation, and any subsequent communication with the QME to be in writing and served on the opposing party when the communication is sent to the QME.

This bill would require the administrative director to develop and make available a medical evaluation request form for communicating with a panel qualified medical evaluator in advance of an evaluation obtained pursuant to the above provisions. The bill would require the administrative director to develop and make available a template QME report form, which will include all necessary statutory and regulatory requirements for a QME report. The bill would require the Division of Workers’ Compensation to adopt regulations to implement these provisions by January 1, 2027.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 4062.4 is added to the Labor Code, to read:

4062.4.

(a) (1) The administrative director shall develop and make available a template qualified medical evaluator (QME) report form, which shall include all necessary statutory and regulatory requirements for a QME report.

(2) Use of a template QME report form developed pursuant to paragraph (1) does not constitute prima facie evidence that a report is complete, accurate, or compliant with applicable statutory or regulatory requirements.

(b) (1) The administrative director shall develop and make available a medical evaluation request form for communicating with a panel qualified medical evaluator pursuant to Section 4062.3 in advance of an evaluation obtained pursuant to Section 4062.1 or 4062.2.

(2) This subdivision does not limit a party’s right to submit relevant information to a qualified medical evaluator pursuant to Section 4062.3.

(c) The Division of Workers’ Compensation, acting in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code), shall adopt regulations to implement this chapter with an effective date of no later than January 1, 2027.