New Hampshire Insurance v. Duvall

The basic question presented by this transfer is whether the commissioner of labor may by regulation require, without a fair opportunity for a hearing, payment of workmen’s compensation benefits ten days after a firefighter has shown he has a disabling heart or lung disease unless rebutting medical evidence demonstrates that it is not work related. Such regulation was adopted pursuant to RSA 281:2 V-a (Supp. 1973) which provides, in part, that “[tjhere shall exist a prima facie presumption that heart or lung disease in a firefighter, whether he is a regular, call or volunteer or retired,...…