Section 287.063

Title XVIII LABOR AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

Chapter 287

Effective - 28 Aug 2005   

  287.063.  Occupational diseases, presumption of exposure — last employer liable — statute of limitations, starts running, when. — 1.  An employee shall be conclusively deemed to have been exposed to the hazards of an occupational disease when for any length of time, however short, he is employed in an occupation or process in which the hazard of the disease exists, subject to the provisions relating to occupational disease due to repetitive motion, as is set forth in subsection 8 of section 287.067.

  2.  The employer liable for the compensation in this section provided shall be the employer in whose employment the employee was last exposed to the hazard of the occupational disease prior to evidence of disability, regardless of the length of time of such last exposure, subject to the notice provision of section 287.420.

  3.  The statute of limitation referred to in section 287.430 shall not begin to run in cases of occupational disease until it becomes reasonably discoverable and apparent that an injury has been sustained related to such exposure, except that in cases of loss of hearing due to industrial noise said limitation shall not begin to run until the employee is eligible to file a claim as hereinafter provided in section 287.197.

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(L. 1959 S.B. 167 § 287.201, A.L. 1974 S.B. 417, A.L. 1983 H.B. 243 & 260, A.L. 1993 S.B. 251, A.L. 2005 S.B. 1 & 130)

(2002) Even though claimant's repetitive motion symptoms originated with prior employers, under last exposure rule the last employer to expose claimant is solely liable for such occupational diseases. Endicott v. Display Technologies, Inc., 77 S.W.3d 612 (Mo.banc).