As Autumn looms just around the corner, we return to our post-summer routines and dig into some WC-related hot topics for September. Here are some hot topics in Workers’ Comp:
School Employees Who Contract COVID-19 Could Qualify for Workers’ Compensation
While workers’ compensation insurance does not normally cover a virus, many states have extended it to cover COVID-19 for certain essential workers. In California, employees no longer have the burden of proving the virus was contracted at work, due to a temporary “rebuttable presumption.”
New Jersey Governor Murphy signed bill S-2380 into law on Monday, September 14, 2020, which concerns workers’ compensation for essential employees and COVID-19 in New Jersey. Many NJ businesses opposed the bill on the grounds that the federal CARES Act already covers employees who contract COVID-19 on the job. The bill is retroactive to March 9, 2020.
Teachers and other education staff who contract COVID-19 would need to check eligibility status for workers’ compensation in their state.
Workers’ Compensation Benchmarking Study Invites Claims Leaders to Take 2020 Survey Examining New Industry Differentiators
The 2020 Workers’ Compensation Study’s 2020 annual claims management survey is underway, examining new industry differentiators. The study aims to help claims leaders address day-to-day operational challenges. Those who participate in the study will remain anonymous and received the final report for free.
Worker May Pursue Claims Against Third Party Admin
This employee promptly submitted his claim, but the third-party administrator didn’t agree to accept it for four months. The worker then filed a complaint for bad faith delay, denial of workers’ compensation benefits and intentional infliction of emotional distress. A Delaware court ruled that the administrator could be held liable for breach of contract as a TPA and that decision is not a “significant departure” from the principal of contract law.