Minnesota

On April 7, 2020, Minnesota  passed an Amendment to their Occupational Disease Act stating that if the you are a qualified worker who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 that  there is a  presumption that the diagnosis of COVID-19 is work related, and the date of injury is the date that the worker could no longer work due to diagnosis or when symptoms appear, whichever comes first.  Qualified persons are noted to be first responders, health care worker and those that are required to provide childcare to first responders. This bill is a part of a rapidly expanding national trend.

Laws creating broad evidentiary presumptions for COVID-19 present both practical and legal problems for employers and workers’ compensation insurance carriers and may also ultimately frustrate their intended beneficiaries -- the front-line workers suffering from COVID-19. For workers, the rush to legislate has resulted in bills that are overbroad, covering employees with no special risk of exposure e.g. police dispatchers and hospital administrators, and under broad, often leaving out less glamorous jobs with high exposure such as bus drivers and store clerks. For employers and insurers, these laws radically shift the burden of proof on existing policies and may create enormous liabilities. Challenges to these laws will need to be resolved by courts - these bills may not withstand constitutional challenges based on retroactivity, the takings clause, the contracts clause, and due process. 

Chartwell is working across the nation to represent the interests of insurers and employers. Chartwell attorneys are on the front-line litigating all issues associated with COVID-19 and are available to advise regarding both individual claims and litigation challenging legislation.