SAINT PAUL, Minn. – Today, the Minnesota House approved legislation extending the COVID-19 presumption for workers’ compensation. The law provides a presumption that if public safety or health care workers contract COVID-19, they did so during the course of their employment and are covered by workers’ compensation. The Department of Labor and Industry’s Workers’ Compensation Advisory Council (WCAC) signed off on the extension on Tuesday.
“We’ve asked a lot of our front line workers, and we can always depend on them to support our state by keeping us safe and healthy as COVID-19 continues to present challenges. We need to take care of those who take care of us, and continuing the workers’ compensation presumption is a major way we can do so,” said Rep. Mike Sundin (DFL – Esko), who serves on the WCAC. “Our agreement shows good cooperation between management and forward-thinking labor representatives. I want to give a special ‘thank you’ to Ed Reynoso of the Minnesota Teamsters for his continued efforts in representing the interests of labor in our state.”
The previous law allowing for this presumption sunsetted on December 31, 2021, leaving 183,000 frontline workers without the guarantee of compensation in the event they contract COVID-19. The new bill would extend the presumption to Jan. 13, 2023. Since passage of the original law, 22,573 workers have received compensation under the presumption, totaling $20 million. During the lapsed time, over 2,000 frontline workers have contracted COVID-19.
Those workers impacted by this legislation include:
- Firefighters
- Peace and police officers
- Paramedics
- EMTs
- Health care providers, nurses or assistive employees in a health care, home care or long-term care setting who work with COVID-19 patients
- Nurses, health care workers, correctional officers or security counselors at correctional facilities
- Child care providers who are required to provide child care for the children of first responders and health care workers under executive orders
The Minnesota Senate approved the legislation earlier in the day, and following the House’s passage, the bill now heads to Governor Walz’s desk.