Why A Presumption of Compensability In Covid-19 Coronavirus Is Necessary for Essential Workers.

by NJLawyer | May 11, 2020 | Accident Cases, Contagious Disease, Coronavirus, Covid 19

Governor Phil Murphy deemed in Executive Orders certain individuals as essential workers.  Those essential workers went beyond public safety workers and included individuals who work in grocery stores, pharmacies, restaurants, gas stations, delivery personnel and financial institutions including banks.  Last year, the New Jersey Legislature passed the Thomas Canzanella 21^st Century First Responders Act (hereinafter First Responders Act) which provides public safety workers, as defined by the statute, a presumption that if the worker contracts a serious communicable disease or related illness, like COVID 19 Coronovirus, that it is deemed by law to be related to their job.  This is a crucial designation that opens up the right to obtain Workers Compensation benefits which include temporary disability benefits, payment of medical bills, and a monetary award based on a percentage of permanency due to the virus.

As currently defined, public safety workers do not include grocery store workers, pharmacy workers, restaurant workers, gas station workers, delivery personnel, and financial institutions or bank workers.  These workers although deemed “essential workers” are not currently contained within the definition of “Public safety workers” in the First Responders Act.

What does this mean for Essential Workers?

The current New Jersey version of the First Responders Act does not provide the presumption to all essential workers.  The current version provides the presumption that its related to their job if you are a police or fire department worker, correction facility officer or employee, EMT, nurse, or advanced medical technicians. 

All other “essential workers” could potentially be entitled to benefits under the state’s workers’ compensation law but without the presumption, in place, the worker would have to establish a connection between the employment and the illness.   It is not an insurmountable burden but workers compensation insurance carriers are more likely to deny the claim on the onset and make the essential service worker prove that their illness “arose out of or in the course of their employment.”  Since the Coronavirus COVID 19 can infect a person outside of work and can be acquired from an asymptomatic person, the advantage goes to the workers’ compensation carrier defending a claim who can point to such medical evidence and even if there are other co-workers infected with COVID 19 Coronavirus, a denial can be justified as not being in bad faith.

Occupational Injury Cases A Possible Avenue to Benefits

New Jersey Law Provides Public Safety Workers with Workers Compensation Benefits for Coronavirus Covid 19 But Needs Expansion

by NJLawyer | May 3, 2020 | Accident Cases, Contagious Disease, Coronavirus, Covid 19

On July 8, 2019, before the Covid 19 Cornonvirus pandemic hit the State of New Jersey hard, the New Jersey Legislature passed the Thomas Canzanella 21^st Century First Responders Act.  The legislation provides Workers Compensation benefits to public safety workers which have been broadly defined.  The Legislation, however, did not envision at the time it was passed that an epidemic would require not only the assistance of public safety workers but frontline grocery and delivery workers.  The New Jersey Legislature is considering legislation to expand worker compensation coverage to those frontline workers as well.