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H.F. No. 4537 - Presumption for Certain COVID-19 Workers’ Compensation Claims; Authorization to Extend Campus Implementation Date (Minnesota Laws 2020, Chapter 72)
 
Author: Senator Jeff R. Howe
 
Prepared By: Senate Counsel, Research and Fiscal Analysis (651/296-4791)
 
Date: April 9, 2020



 

Section 1. Occupational Disease. Paragraph (f) provides a presumption that an employee who contracts COVID­-19 has an occupational disease arising out of and in the course of employment if the employee is employed in one of the occupations specified and has a confirmed case of COVID-19.

Clause (1) lists the covered occupations for the presumption, including: licensed peace officers; firefighters; paramedics; nurses, healthcare workers, correction officers, and security counselors employed by the state or a political subdivision at a corrections, detention, or secure treatment facility; emergency medical technicians; health care providers, nurses, and assistive employees employed in a health care, home care, or long-term care setting, with direct COVID-19 patient care or ancillary work in COVID-19 patient units; and workers who are required to provide childcare to first responders and health care workers under Executive Orders 20-02 and 20-19.

Clause (2) requires an employee's contraction of COVID-19 to be confirmed by a positive laboratory or diagnosed and documented by the employee's licensed physician, licensed physician's assistant, or licensed advanced practice registered nurse (APRN), based on the employee's symptoms. Requires a copy of the positive test or documentation to be provided to the employer or insurer.

Clause (3) provides that once the presumption is established by an employee, the presumption can only be rebutted if the employer or insurer shows the employment was not a direct cause of the disease.

Clause (4) provides that the “date of injury” for an employee who has contracted COVID-­19 under paragraph (f), which is the earliest date that the employee was unable to work: (1) is due to a diagnosis of COVID-19; or (2) is due to symptoms that were later diagnosed as COVID­-19.

Clause (5) specifies that an employee who has contracted COVID­-19, but who is not entitled to the presumption under paragraph (f), is not excluded from claiming another occupational disease or from claiming a personal injury.

Clause (6) requires the commissioner of labor and industry to provide a detailed report on COVID-19 workers' compensation claims to the Workers' Compensation Advisory Council and the legislature by January 15, 2021.

Provides an effective date for the provision to apply to employees who contract COVID-­19 on or after the day following final enactment. Sunsets paragraph (f) on May 1, 2021.

Section 2. Commissioner Authority to Extend CAMPUS Implementation Date. Authorizes the commissioner of labor and industry to extend the implementation date of the Claims Access and Management Platform User System (CAMPUS) due to COVID-19. Provides notice requirements if the commissioner decides to delay the CAMPUS implementation date. Provides an effective date of the day following final enactment.

 

 

 

 

 
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