Victorian workers are to receive treatment and support for work-related mental health injuries as soon as they need it under new legislation passed by Parliament this week (16 February).
Minister for Workplace Safety, Ingrid Stitt said the Workplace Injury Rehabilitation and Compensation Amendment (Provisional Payments) Act 2020 removed barriers for workers who sought urgent mental health support.
“The new laws mean that Victorian workers who seek compensation for a mental health injury under WorkCover will receive payments for reasonable medical expenses while they await the outcome of their claim,” Ms Stitt said.
“Covering expenses such as GP visits, psychiatrist or psychologist appointments and medication, the payments scheme ensures workers will not have to delay getting the care they deserve, while covering stressful out of pocket costs,” she said.
“Mental health injury claims can be complex and take longer to determine than physical injury claims.”
Ms Stitt said that prior to the new scheme, workers could have waited up to five weeks before payments were received to access treatment or support.
“These important reforms come at a time when work-related mental injury claims are growing significantly – it’s expected they’ll account for a third of all workers’ compensation claims by 2030,” the Minister said.
“Giving workers the support they need early increases their chance of recovery and a successful return to work,” she said.
Ms Stitt said the scheme was set to commence on 1 July and encouraged all workers in need of help with a work-related mental health injury to make a claim and get the treatment they needed.
She said eligible volunteers, including Emergency Management Victoria volunteers, volunteer school workers and jurors, would also be covered.
