Did you get coronavirus? California fund will cover income losses, medical costs for some

Apr. 14--A giant workers' compensation insurer announced Monday that it has created two relief funds, each worth $25 million, to support the health and financial stability of California employees required to work during the coronavirus stay-home order.

Leaders of the State Compensation Insurance Fund said the funds would assist any of its 110,000 policyholders and their employees whose work is deemed essential under an executive order issued by California Gov. Gavin Newsom. One in 10 California businesses get their workers' compensation insurance through State Fund.

For qualifying employers, any worker who tests positive for COVID-19 and has to self-isolate can apply for relief funds to cover some medical costs and up to six weeks of lost wages, agency officials said. Workers will not have to prove they contracted the illness on the job.

Business owners can apply for grants up $10,000 or two times the policyholder's premium, whichever is less, to defray the costs of expenses related to protecting their employees from COVID-19. State Fund will pay both past and future expenses.

"We have worked hard to put ourselves in a position to be able to help Californians when we are needed, and we are extremely grateful to the essential workers and businesses that are supporting all of us through this crisis," State Fund President and CEO Vern Steiner said.

The state of Illinois said that it would take a broader approach, with Gov. J.B. Pritzker announcing Monday that all essential workers would be eligible for workers' compensation coverage if they were diagnosed with COVID-19. National Nurses United said Tuesday it had worked collaboratively with Pritzker and the Illinois AFL-CIO to get this coverage for workers.

"By the nature of our work as nurses, we are in constant danger of being exposed to COVID-19," said Martese Chism, an RN in Chicago and a member of the NNU board of directors. "It is so important to have presumptive eligibility for nurses. We are thrilled that Gov. Pritzker has made it possible for all health care workers in Illinois to be automatically presumed eligible for workers' compensation if they contract COVID-19."

For years now, the nurse's union in California has been lobbying the state legislature for presumptive eligibility for an antibiotic-resistant strain of staphylococcus spread mostly in hospitals, for lower musculoskeletal injuries, and for PTSD, union official said, but they have failed to gain this coverage even as it has been awarded to firefighters and other first responders in male-dominated industries.

The move by State Fund may help some nurses and health care workers, but most will have to fight on a case-by-case basis for workers' compensation coverage.

State Fund leaders said that, if the $50 million in relief funds are depleted, the agency's board of directors will consider authorizing additional funds, according to the agency's news release. Employers will not have their policies affected by any payments the agency makes that are outside of a workers' compensation claim.

The relief funds will go to workers whose businesses were defined by Newsom's Executive Order N-33-20, which stated that "the supply chain must continue, and Californians must have access to such necessities as food, prescriptions, and health care."

State Fund officials also stated they would pay full workers' compensation benefits for any COVID-19 claim that is clearly work-related rather than drawing down on the Essential Worker Support Fund.

The payments workers will receive for medical costs will depend on whether they have health insurance. If they do, State Fund officials said, they can apply for funds to help cover the cost of any deductibles and co-pays. If they do not have insurance, the relief fund will assist them with covering medical costs.

To find out if your employer has State Fund coverage, ask the business owner or the human resources department.

State Fund will review employer applications for the Essential Business Support Fund on a first-come, first-served basis and will discontinue payments when the fund is depleted. However, agency officials stated, State Fund will keep all applications in the order they were received in the event that additional funds are set aside.

"These two funds, along with our earlier actions to suspend policy cancellations and extend credit to businesses impacted by COVID-19, are our initial attempts to do our part," Steiner said. "Throughout our country, we are seeing incredible examples of businesses putting social good ahead of their bottom line, and we will continue to look for ways we can help."

COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the coronavirus, killed 687 Californians and sickened 22,348 as of Monday, according to the California Department of Public Health. While many people won't know they have it because their symptoms are so mild, others will get fever, coughing and shortness of breath that are debilitating.

Although the risks of death are low for 80 percent of people who contract the respiratory illness, public health officials have issued stay-home orders prevent surges of sick people from overwhelming hospitals and forcing physicians to choose who among the sickest patients get access to ventilators and other crucial equipment.

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