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PA 26-12 Countdown: 5 Things Connecticut Healthcare and Education Employers Must Do Before October 1
Connecticut healthcare and education employers have 34 days from August 28, 2026, to prepare for Public Act 26-12. The workers’ compensation provisions take effect on October 1, 2026.
The law creates enhanced workers’ compensation benefits for certain teachers, healthcare providers, and related employees who suffer a compensable injury after a physical or negligent assault while performing their duties. The most significant change is wage replacement equal to 100% of average weekly earnings, without the standard maximum benefit cap, for qualifying periods of total or partial incapacity.
PA 26-12 also addresses medical expenses, court-appearance wage protection, salary continuation, and leave-bank treatment. These changes affect more than your insurance policy. They also affect your employee handbook, payroll procedures, claims reporting, incident response, and budget.
This guide explains the five actions Connecticut healthcare and education employers should complete before October 1.
This article provides general information, not legal advice. Confirm how PA 26-12 applies to your organization with Connecticut employment counsel, your workers’ compensation carrier, and your insurance broker.
What does PA 26-12 change for Connecticut workers’ compensation?
Under the standard Connecticut workers’ compensation system, wage-loss benefits generally replace a portion of an injured employee’s earnings and are subject to statutory limits.
PA 26-12 creates a different rule for qualifying assault-related injuries involving covered education and healthcare workers. Effective for applicable injuries on or after October 1, 2026, the law provides:
100% of the employee’s average weekly earnings
No maximum cap on the enhanced wage benefit
Benefits for qualifying temporary total or temporary partial incapacity
Payment for reasonably necessary medical and related services
Lost-wage protection connected to qualifying court appearances
Additional salary and leave protections for covered school employees
The law was signed by Governor Ned Lamont on May 11, 2026. You can review the Governor’s official announcement and the text of Public Act 26-12.
1. Identify covered employees and update your handbook
Your first step is to determine which employees and locations fall within the law’s workers’ compensation provisions.
Covered education employees generally include teachers and other individuals employed by or serving local boards of education, the State Board of Education, the Board of Regents for Higher Education, or the Board of Trustees for The University of Connecticut, while acting within the scope of their duties.
Healthcare coverage can reach more than physicians and nurses. The law addresses healthcare providers and certain employees of healthcare facilities or institutions, including individuals with direct patient or patient-family contact. Depending on the facility and role, covered personnel may include clinical staff, patient escorts, and some records or support employees.
Review your workforce by:
Job title and job description
Employer entity and facility location
Direct patient or student contact
Work performed during the incident
Whether the employee acted within the scope of employment
Whether the employee is employed by a public, private, nonprofit, or affiliated organization
Do not rely only on department names. A hospital’s administrative employee who interacts with patients may require a different analysis from a back-office employee with no patient contact. A school employee’s title also may not tell the entire story.
Handbook changes to make before October 1
Your handbook and workers’ compensation procedures should explain:
How employees report an assault-related injury
Who receives the report
Required timing for incident documentation
How medical treatment is coordinated
How court appearances are handled
That qualifying absences cannot be improperly charged to protected leave banks
How salary and workers’ compensation payments may be coordinated
Who employees should contact with questions
Use plain language. Employees, supervisors, HR staff, payroll personnel, and claims administrators should receive the same instructions.
2. Audit payroll data and prepare for 100% AWW exposure
Average weekly earnings, often called AWW or AWE in workers’ compensation discussions, means the employee’s earnings used to calculate wage-loss benefits. The calculation can become complicated when an employee receives salary, overtime, shift differentials, bonuses, stipends, or other compensation.
PA 26-12 makes accurate payroll data especially important for high earners. Under the enhanced rule, a qualifying assault-related claim may generate wage benefits equal to 100% of average weekly earnings without the ordinary maximum cap.
For example, consider a healthcare employee whose average weekly earnings are $4,000. A qualifying period of incapacity could create a substantially different financial obligation than a standard capped claim. The employer and carrier must determine the correct earnings figure under applicable Connecticut law and claim procedures.
Before October 1, ask your payroll and insurance teams to review:
Current payroll by employee and job classification
Overtime and shift-differential records
Stipends and recurring allowances
Bonus and incentive payment treatment
Multiple-job or multi-location assignments
Payroll records used for workers’ compensation audits
Procedures for transmitting wage data to the carrier
Coordination between gross salary, indemnity benefits, and payroll deductions
Do not assume that your payroll software automatically handles the new rule. Ask your carrier how it will calculate benefits and what wage records it needs after a qualifying injury.
The new law does not mean every injury receives 100% uncapped wage replacement. The enhanced benefit depends on the employee, the incident, the injury, incapacity, and the relationship between the assault and the employee’s duties.
3. Build a court-appearance and leave-protection process
A qualifying workplace assault can create obligations beyond medical treatment and weekly wage benefits. The employee may need to participate in a criminal or civil proceeding related to the incident.
PA 26-12 addresses lost wages connected with qualifying court appearances. For covered school employees, the law also provides salary-continuation and leave protections for covered absences related to the assault or court proceedings, subject to the statutory requirements and permitted workers’ compensation offsets.
Your organization should create a separate process for:
Receiving notice of a court date
Confirming that the proceeding relates to the workplace incident
Tracking time away from work
Coordinating salary continuation with workers’ compensation payments
Preventing improper deductions from sick, vacation, or personal leave
Documenting payments and offsets
Communicating with the employee without discouraging participation
Payroll should not treat every court-related absence as ordinary unpaid time or routine PTO. HR should also avoid making assumptions about eligibility before reviewing the incident and the employee’s status.
Give supervisors a short escalation checklist. They should know to contact HR or the claims administrator immediately when an employee reports:
An assault-related injury
A subpoena or court date
A request for medical care
An inability to work
A concern about leave-bank deductions
A dispute about salary continuation
4. Strengthen incident reporting, training, and claims coordination
The law makes workplace violence prevention and incident documentation more important. A clear record helps your organization respond quickly and allows the carrier to evaluate coverage and benefits under the correct facts.
Update your incident response plan for healthcare facilities, schools, colleges, and related operations. The plan should identify:
Who protects the employee and other workers immediately after an incident
When emergency services or law enforcement should be contacted
How supervisors preserve relevant records
How witnesses provide statements
How video, access, and security records are maintained
How the first report of injury reaches the carrier
Who communicates with the employee and family
How return-to-work options are evaluated
Training should include de-escalation, safe reporting, workplace violence response, and documentation. In healthcare settings, training may need to address patient behavior, visitor conduct, staffing conditions, and security escalation. In schools, it should address student and visitor incidents, transportation settings, extracurricular activities, and off-campus duties.
The Connecticut Workers’ Compensation Commission administers the state system and provides employer resources, forms, claim information, and reporting guidance through its employer workers’ compensation resources.
5. Review your policy, classifications, and 2026 budget
PA 26-12 increases the potential severity of certain assault-related claims. That does not automatically mean your workers’ compensation premium will increase by a specific percentage. Your actual premium depends on payroll, classification codes, experience modification, carrier pricing, credits, claims history, and underwriting.
Connecticut’s 2026 workers’ compensation rate filing provides an important comparison point. The Connecticut Insurance Department reported an average:
3.8% decrease in voluntary-market loss costs
0.4% decrease in assigned-risk rates
1.3% voluntary-market increase for office and clerical classifications
4.9% assigned-risk increase for office and clerical classifications
These figures are averages. They do not guarantee a matching premium change for your organization.
Read our broader Connecticut workers’ compensation and PA 26-12 business overview, then review your renewal with these questions:
Are all employees assigned to accurate class codes?
Does payroll reflect current staffing and compensation?
Is your experience modification factor accurate?
Has the carrier explained how it will handle qualifying 100% AWW claims?
Does the policy address healthcare, education, and workplace violence exposures appropriately?
Are safety and return-to-work programs documented?
Would another carrier provide a better fit for your organization?
A classification code places payroll into a workers’ compensation risk category. An experience modification factor compares your claims history with similar employers and can materially affect your premium. Review both before renewal.
The 2026 rate environment may create savings for some employers, but PA 26-12 makes it risky to focus only on the statewide rate headline. Your total cost of risk includes claims, payroll administration, leave management, litigation support, employee absence, and operational disruption.
Frequently asked questions about PA 26-12
Does PA 26-12 apply to every Connecticut employer?
No. The enhanced 100% uncapped wage benefit targets specified healthcare and education employees injured by qualifying physical or negligent assaults while performing their duties. Other provisions of PA 26-12 apply more broadly to Connecticut employers.
Does every workplace injury receive 100% of wages?
No. The enhanced rule applies only when the statutory conditions are met. The employee must be covered, the incident must qualify, the injury must be compensable, and the injury must cause total or partial incapacity.
Does the law cover high-earning healthcare and education employees?
A qualifying claim may involve 100% of average weekly earnings without the ordinary maximum cap. Employers should prepare payroll records that accurately document compensation for high earners.
Can an employer charge the absence to sick or vacation leave?
Covered school-employee absences connected with a qualifying assault or related court appearance receive specific leave protections. Employers should confirm the details with counsel and their claims administrator before applying a leave code.
Where can I learn more about workers’ compensation in Connecticut?
Start with the Connecticut Workers’ Compensation Commission, the Connecticut Insurance Department’s 2026 rate filing notice, and the official Governor’s PA 26-12 announcement. You can also watch the Governor’s official YouTube announcement. For general public discussion, the r/Connecticut subreddit may provide context, but it is not a substitute for legal or insurance advice.
Your October 1 action list
Before October 1, 2026:
Identify covered employees and facilities
Update your handbook and injury-reporting procedures
Audit payroll and high-earner compensation records
Create a court-appearance wage and leave process
Train managers, HR, payroll, and security personnel
Confirm claim-reporting contacts with your carrier
Review classifications, experience modification, and renewal pricing
Document workplace violence prevention measures
Ask counsel and your broker to review the final procedure
Do not wait until the first qualifying claim to discover that your payroll system, handbook, or insurance program cannot coordinate the new requirements. Contact Insure Connecticut LLC for a Connecticut workers’ compensation policy review focused on PA 26-12, payroll accuracy, classification, and carrier options.
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