The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-07-22
HAVE CHANGED MANY POINTS IN
 ACCIDENT LAW
Occupational Diseases No
 Longer Under Act.
COMMISSIONER IS
 MORE POWERFUL
Many Liberal Provisions
 Now In Effect.

Several important changes in the compensation laws are shown in an- nual bulletin No. ', issued by the board of compensation commissioners and containing amendments and ad- dhions adopted by the 1919 legisla~- ture.
 The most important of these is tho reserve of the opinion of the supreme courtr of errors two years ago, which provided that to receive compensation, an injury at some definite time must be shown, and that diseases growing out of an occupation do not entitle one to the benefits of the law. The Jaws provide that compensation shall be paid for illness arising out Of an occupation, with certain limita- uons. The commissioners are also given greater power over insurance companies, whereby they can force the companies to make prompt settle ments. The more important of the changes follow:
 ''The law has been amended in a number of important points The course to be pursued by employers of less than five who wish to come with in the act is radically differt it. In place of the complicated procedure which has hitherto prevailed, all that the householder or other employer of a few people has to do is to take out insurance this brnigs him automati- cally within the act. If the employee does not wish to come within the act he is to take certin steps which are set out in the law of detail. Aa a matter of fact, most employees wish to come within the terms of the act so that this procedure will probably not be regarded as a matter of very gen. eral interest. Generally spea king, if employers of less than five do noth- ing, they are not bound to pay com pensatton but are subjected to a suit of damages at common law.
 Ruling on OccUpational Diseases.
 ''The rule established by the su- preme court of errors in Miller vs. American Wire & Steel Co.,, decided about two years ago, has now been changed by the legislature, and an entirely different rule has been estab- lished by the statute. That case, which was one of lead poisoning, de- cided that diseases which come on gradually as a result of industrial conditions do not entitle one to com pensation, but that there must be an injury which could be located at some definite time. Under the new act this is no longer so. If. however, the ex- posture has resulted in the aggrava- ton of a pre- existing disease com pensation is to be allowed only for the proportion of the disability due to the aggravation. This imposes a. diff cult task upon the commission, and the questions involving this aggrava- ton of a disease will probably be the source of a good deal of litigation.
 Diseases which are of a conta- gfous, communicable or mental nature are not included, and there can be no compensation for such disorders.
 Changes of Physician.
 ''The commissioner is now given discretion to authorize or direct a: change of physician or surgeon. It is the duty of the employer to furnish a physician. If he does not do so on proper notice, the employee may fur nish one at the expense of the e,nl- ployer. Cases have arisen in which the employer has done nothing toward providing g. physician. but as soon as the employee has furnished one, the employer has appeared and demanded a change. In order to cover that sit uation, the act now provides that the employee, under those conditions, shall not be compelled to change the physician, except with the approval of the commission"
 Partial Dependents.
 Another important point concerns the amount of compensation to be re- ceived by a partial dependent. This
 
 of good deal of discussion by com missioners and courts. In a long memorandum written some three years ago one of the commissioners, after renlarkfng that several incon- sistent views had been adopted by the several commissioners, held that a partial dependent could get the whole amount which he had been in the habit of receiving from the deceased -l-, I.~ amount allowed to a total dependent was not exceeded The commissioner took the view that there was no req son in the nature of things why the same support which the dependent had been receiving should not be con- tinued, so long as the maximum pro- vided by the statute for the protection of the employer against claims larger than industrial conditions could stand, was nothing in the act which called for any different construction.
 A different view was taken by one of the judges of the superior court, and the amount allowed to partial de- pendents was cut down so that they received less than they had been re- ceiving during the lifetime of the em- ployee, and only a fraction Of what would have been allowed to total de- Ipendents. The case stands by itself and there has been no decision by the supreme court of errors It has been, therefore, a matter Of con1ec- ture as to whether the vlew thus taken by the superior court, when the commissioners have followed since the decision, would finally pre- vail.
 '.The General Assembly, after fuil hearing and consideration, took the view that whatever the act as IL mas existed in the past may have meanrs- sound policy requires that the view that the partial dependent should re- ceive the full amount of the suppors which he has been receiving, up t0s the maximum allowed total depenents. should be adopted.
 Waiting Periods.
 "A radical change has been made on the subpect of the waiting perioo. While it remains what it was before, seven days, an important pro- vision added that if the fncapactty