California Extends Workers’ Compensation Presumption for COVID-19

Until Jan. 1, 2023 it is the employer's burden to prove certain employees did not contract COVID-19 on the job.

Under the bill, if certain employees test positive for COVID-19 within 14 days after working away from their homes at their employers’ direction, the illness will be presumed compensable. Employers that wish to dispute an employee’s presumptively compensable claim for COVID-19 may still present evidence to rebut that presumption. However, the bill requires employers to dispute this type of claim within 30 or 45 days, rather than within the 90 days that are allowed for other types of claims. 

A similar presumption was previously implemented under Executive Order N-62-20, but that had only applied for employees who worked outside their homes between March 19 and July 5, 2020. With some modifications, the new law adopts and expands that order to cover certain employees through Jan. 1, 2023. It also creates retroactive and ongoing reporting requirements for employers with five or more employees in the state. 

Source: Zywave