Can I Get Compensation for Long-Term Effects of COVID?

Although we have been grappling with COVID-19 for more than a year, there is still a lot that we don’t know about the virus, including what kind of long-term repercussions survivors may be facing. Fortunately, employees who are injured on the job, or who contract an illness (including COVID-19), are often entitled to workers’ compensation benefits.

However, submitting and following up with this type of claim can be difficult, so if you contracted COVID-19 at work and need help filing a claim, it is important to reach out to our experienced workplace accident lawyers in Rockford Illinois for help.

Long-Term Effects of COVID-19

While healthcare providers, researchers, and government agencies are continuing to learn new things about COVID-19, there are some things that have been confirmed. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), for instance, has revealed that organs besides the lungs could be affected by COVID-19, even after a person has recovered. For some, this means that symptoms could end up lasting for weeks or even months. The most commonly reported long term effects of COVID include:

• Fatigue
• Shortness of breath
• Joint pain
• Persistent cough
• Chest pain

Many others have reported muscle pain, headache, intermittent fevers, and heart palpitations, while some patients have suffered from more serious long-term complications, like smell and taste problems, lung function abnormalities, inflammation of the heart muscle, and acute kidney problems. Unfortunately, these kinds of issues could end up affecting the health and employment of millions of people.

Workers’ Compensation for COVID-19

Last summer, Illinois lawmakers passed HB 2455, which created a workers’ compensation-related rebuttable presumption for certain employees who contracted COVID-19 while on the job. Unlike many other states, which have passed similar laws, the new Illinois statute covers not only first responders, but also COVID-19 front-line workers, which includes healthcare workers, law enforcement, and anyone employed by an essential business if they are:

• Required by their employment to encounter members of the public
• Required to work in locations with more than 15 employees

Employees who fall under this category are not required to prove that they contracted COVID-19 while at work but can collect benefits if they test positive, as long as their employer doesn’t provide information rebutting the presumption. This law was recently extended through June 30, 2021.

Permanent Disability Benefits

Under Illinois law, employees who are injured on the job and who suffer from a permanent disability as a result, are often entitled to either Permanent Partial Disability (PPD) or Permanent Total Disability (PTD) benefits. These benefits take the form of monetary compensation, usually two-thirds of a person’s income, or the difference between what they earned before and after their illness. Employees who contract COVID-19 and who suffer long-term symptoms as a result, may be eligible for these kinds of permanent disability benefits.

Experienced Rockford, IL Workplace Accident Lawyers

To speak with a dedicated Rockford, IL workplace accident lawyer about your own eligibility for COVID-19-related workers’ compensation benefits, please call Fisk & Monteleone Ltd. at 815-962-0044 today.