Today, the Minnesota Legislature unanimously passed legislation that provides occupational protections for certain workers who contract COVID-19 on the job. The bill, chief-authored by Senator Howe, specifies that certain frontline workers, including health care workers, police officers, paramedics, corrections officers, and others are eligible for expedited workers’ compensation benefits for health issues that may arise due to the coronavirus.

“If we’re going to ask our first responders to fight this pandemic on our behalf, they have to know we’ve got their backs if they get sick,” said senator Jeff Howe (R-Rockville).  These are the Minnesotans that take care of us, and we need to take care of them. Workers’ compensation insurance was developed to provide our public servants a way to cover a portion of their lost wages and medical costs.  This reform will ensure that they and their families don’t have to worry as much and will allow us as a state to recognize the sacrifices they are making to combat COVID-19 on our behalf.”

The legislation guarantees that people in high-risk jobs who contract COVID-19 while performing their occupational duties are eligible for workers’ compensation benefits with a lower burden of having to prove the infection was a direct result of their job. Those Individuals with confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 will be presumed to have an occupational disease, thereby making them eligible for workers’ compensation benefits under state law. Most licensed peace officers, firefighters, paramedics, nurses, health care workers, correction officers, workers at secure state facilities, workers at long-term care facilities, and child care providers are among the classes of workers included in the bill.

The provisions of the bill expire on May 1, 2021.