(a) (1) In accordance with the directorâs authorized regulations, and except as provided in subdivision (c) and Sections 2708.1 and 2709, a claimant shall establish medical eligibility for each uninterrupted period of disability by filing a first claim for disability benefits supported by the certificate of a treating physician or practitioner that establishes the sickness, injury, or pregnancy of the employee, or the condition of the family member that warrants the care of the employee. For subsequent periods of uninterrupted disability after the period covered by the initial certificate or any preceding continued claim, a claimant shall file a continued claim for those benefits supported by the certificate of a treating physician or practitioner. A certificate filed to establish medical eligibility for the employeeâs own sickness, injury, or pregnancy shall contain a diagnosis and diagnostic code prescribed in the International Classification of Diseases, or, if no diagnosis has yet been obtained, a detailed statement of symptoms. (2) A certificate filed to establish medical eligibility of the employeeâs own sickness, injury, or pregnancy shall also contain a statement of medical facts, including secondary diagnoses when applicable, within the physicianâs or practitionerâs knowledge, based on a physical examination and a documented medical history of the claimant by the physician or practitioner, indicating the physicianâs or practitionerâs conclusion as to the claimantâs disability, and a statement of the physicianâs or practitionerâs opinion as to the expected duration of the disability. (b) An employee shall be required to file a certificate to establish eligibility when taking leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition. The certificate shall be developed by the department. In order to establish medical eligibility of the serious health condition of the family member that warrants the care of the employee, the information shall be within the physicianâs or practitionerâs knowledge and shall be based on a physical examination and documented medical history of the family member and shall contain all of the following: (1) A diagnosis and diagnostic code prescribed in the International Classification of Diseases, or, if no diagnosis has yet been obtained, a detailed statement of symptoms. (2) The date, if known, on which the condition commenced. (3) The probable duration of the condition. (4) An estimate of the amount of time that the physician or practitioner believes the employee needs to care for the child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or domestic partner. (5) (A) A statement that the serious health condition warrants the participation of the employee to provide care for their child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or domestic partner. (B) âWarrants the participation of the employeeâ includes, but is not limited to, providing psychological comfort, and arranging âthird partyâ care for the child, parent, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or domestic partner, as well as directly providing, or participating in, the medical care. (c) The department shall develop a certification form for bonding that is separate and distinct from the certificate required in subdivision (a) for an employee taking leave to bond with a minor child within the first year of the childâs birth or placement in connection with foster care or adoption. (d) The first and any continuing claim of an individual who obtains care and treatment outside this state shall be supported by a certificate of a treating physician or practitioner duly licensed or certified by the state or foreign country in which the claimant is receiving the care and treatment. If a physician or practitioner licensed by and practicing in a foreign country is under investigation by the department for filing false claims and the department does not have legal remedies to conduct a crim
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