PTSD presumption and covered conditions Workers’ compensation covers injuries and diseases that arise out of and in the course of employment , including: • Traumatic injuries. • Occupational diseases caused, aggravated, or accelerated by work. • Certain mental injuries, including compensable post‑traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) . Since January 1, 2019 , and under Minn. Stat. § 176.011, PTSD is defined as an occupational disease, and a presumption applies for enumerated occupations (e.g., many first responders) if statutory criteria are met: covered employment, diagnosis by a licensed psychiatrist or psychologist, and no prior PTSD diagnosis. If the presumption applies, the burden shifts to the employer/insurer to rebut it. Injuries occurring while an employee is traveling between work sites or performing assigned duties off‑site can also be covered, depending on the facts.
Multi‑state injuries Minnesota workers’ compensation can generally cover:
• Employees hired in Minnesota by Minnesota employers who also work out of state. • Workers employed elsewhere but injured while working in Minnesota, who may have the option of claiming under Minnesota law or their home state’s law. A specific reciprocity arrangement limits Minnesota coverage for some North Dakota employees temporarily working in Minnesota—short‑term work under defined day/hour thresholds remains under North Dakota law. Reporting workplace injuries When an employee is injured: • The employer , not the employee, must complete a First Report of Injury (FROI) . • The employer must give the employee the “Minnesota Workers’ Compensation System Employee Information Sheet” when providing a copy of the FROI. • The FROI must reach the insurer within the statutory timeframe (often within 10 days from knowledge of the injury), and the insurer must then file with DLI within its own deadline (commonly within 14 days when disability lasts beyond three days). • Self‑insured employers must file directly with DLI within similar timeframes. Serious or fatal injuries must also be reported by telephone to DLI within the time period specified by rule (currently 48 hours for fatalities or very serious incidents), in addition to the FROI. Filing an FROI does not admit liability; it starts the claim process. The insurer investigates and determines compensability based on available facts.
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