Mandates paid leave by allowing qualified employees to take medical leave to undergo donation procedures, medical tests, and recovery related to being a living organ donor, or bone marrow transplant donor.
H6065 amends Rhode Island’s temporary disability insurance law to expand the state’s temporary caregiver insurance program. The bill adds explicit coverage for employees who take leave to participate as a living organ donor or bone marrow transplant donor, including time for related medical tests, procedures, surgeries, and recovery. It also updates the benefit schedule so temporary caregiver benefits can reach up to seven weeks in a benefit year beginning January 1, 2025, and up to eight weeks beginning January 1, 2026.
The bill continues to cover leave for bonding with a newborn or newly placed adopted or foster child, and for caring for a seriously ill child, spouse, domestic partner, parent, parent-in-law, or grandparent. It preserves existing rules on notice to employers, coordination with temporary disability benefits, job restoration, and continuation of health benefits during leave. The act is set to take effect on January 1, 2026, although the explanatory materials describe the donation-related leave as paid medical leave for organ and bone marrow donors.
The bill would amend sections 28-41-34 and 28-41-35 of the Rhode Island General Laws governing temporary disability insurance benefits. Its main legal effect is to broaden the temporary caregiver insurance program to include paid leave for organ donation and bone marrow donation, while also increasing the maximum duration of caregiver benefits over time. Employers would remain subject to the existing reinstatement, health coverage, notice, and coordination requirements tied to the state leave program and related federal and state family leave laws.
The available voting history shows strong bipartisan support and no recorded opposition: the House passed both the amendment and the bill as amended unanimously, 71-0 and 73-0. There are no committee transcript excerpts indicating controversy or debate. Overall, the bill appears to have been viewed favorably as a targeted expansion of paid leave benefits for caregiving and medically necessary donation-related absences.
No notable points of contention appear in the provided record. The bill’s main policy choices are the expansion of paid leave to living organ and bone marrow donors and the phased increase in benefit weeks, but the unanimous votes suggest these provisions were broadly accepted. Any practical concerns would likely relate to employer notice, benefit coordination, and the cost or administration of expanded leave, but none are documented in the supplied materials.