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Know your Rights: Covid-19 and the Workplace

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By: Janice Dantes

 

The world stopped with the arrival of COVID-19. Unfortunately, COVID-19 has lead to many deaths in our community. Most recently, I am in the process of opening a probate estate for a man in his twenties with no prior medical conditions who passed away from COVID-19 leaving behind a one year old child. In this case, he is believed to have contracted the virus at work.

While many of those who contracted COVID-19 do not know how they contracted it, there are others who believe they contracted it at work. If this is believed to be the case, you may have a claim.

Below is some questions to consider to determine if you may have a claim.

1. Do you have a positive test for Covid-19? In order to have a claim for worker’s compensation or personal injury, you do have to have a positive test. If you have all the symptoms of COVID-19 but were never tested and later test negative, you will have difficulty later proving that you had COVID-19. Be sure to take a COVID test if you believe you have it.

2. Did you get Covid at work? Many people are unsure how they contracted Covid-19. However, if several co-workers you interact with at work were diagnosed, the circumstantial evidence supports a finding that you may have contracted the virus from work. A doctor can also conclude that you contracted the virus at work if he finds no known exposures elsewhere.

3. Your injury was the result of Covid-19. If after you are diagnosed with Covid you have a knee replacement surgery, you will likely be unable to claim the knee replacement surgery. Your injury or death has to be related to your Covid-19 diagnosis.

4.Preexisting conditions do not matter. Your injury need not be new. If you are diagnosed with COVID and it aggravates your damaged lungs from smoking, you still may have a claim

5.My Worker’s Compensation Claim was denied. Now what? If your worker’s compensation claim was denied, don’t stop there. Be sure to see a personal injury to see if you have a third-party negligence action.

If you have any questions about COVID-19 injury claims, please contact me at (312) 546-5077 or janice@pinaylaw.com.

Thank you for reading. Until we meet again, love one another.

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