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ARTICLE · 25 SEPTEMBER 2020

Workers' Compensation Liability & COVID-19: A Comparative Law Review

Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP
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Generally, workers' compensation systems permit employees to make claims for diseases contracted during their employment if there is some nexus between the employee's job duties and the onset or progression of the disease.

United StatesEmployment and HR
Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP
Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP
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Generally, workers' compensation systems permit employees to make claims for diseases contracted during their employment if there is some nexus between the employee's job duties and the onset or progression of the disease. In light of the difficulty in definitively proving when and where a communicable disease such as COVID-19 is contracted, several states enacted laws to create presumptions in favor of workers' compensation coverage for certain workers diagnosed with COVID-19, particularly for first responders and health care workers. However, presumptions can be nuanced, and each must be examined closely to determine how to investigate and defend claims related to alleged contraction of COVID-19.

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