On February 4, 2022, Governor Tim Walz signed House File (H.F.) 1203 into law, which extends the presumption that certain frontline healthcare workers contracted COVID-19 at work if they test positive. The prior presumption had expired on December 31, 2021. This extension applies to COVID-19 illnesses from February 4, 2022, through January 13, 2023. H.F. 1203 is not retroactive, so it does not grant a presumption to those who contracted COVID-19 between January 1, 2022, and February 3, 2022—the day before the effective date of the new law. What is the presumption? In 2020, Minnesota (among several other states) enacted legislation (Minn. Stat. § 176.011, subd. 15 (f)) that created a rebuttable presumption that employees working in certain health and public-safety fields contracted COVID-19 at work if they tested positive for the disease. H.F. 1203 reaffirms that presumption, allowing those employees to obtain workers’ compensation benefits for their illnesses unless their employers can rebut the presumption that they contracted the virus at work. The law applies to licensed peace officers under Stat. § 626.84, subd. 1; firefighters; paramedics; nurses or health care workers, correctional officers, or security counselors employed by the state or a political subdivision at corrections, detention, or…
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Minnesota Extends Workers' Compensation Presumption for Frontline Workers Who Test …
