Urgent: Important COVID Filing Information

AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM CLEAT TO ALL TEXAS LAW ENFORCEMENT

IF YOU HAVE BEEN IMPACTED BY COVID-19, PLEASE READ!

The Texas Legislature passed SB 22 which provides new rights to certain first responders who contracted COVID-19. The bill took effect on June 14, 2021, and provides certain first responders, including peace officers, custodial officers, and detention officers, who contract COVID-19 a presumption that they contracted the illness in the line of duty if they meet certain conditions. Therefore, an employee would be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits for a line of duty illness.

The new statutory presumption applies to all new COVID-19 workers’ compensation claims filed on or after June 14, 2021. The bill also provides that if a workers’ compensation claim was denied for a first responder who contracted COVID-19 prior to June 14, 2021, the employee or survivors can request in writing that the insurance carrier reprocess the claim, and when doing so the insurance carrier must apply the statutory presumption afforded by SB 22.  This request must be made IN WRITING to the insurance carrier and must be submitted before June 14, 2022. The Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) has developed a sample form that can be used to request that the claim be reprocessed. The Sample Request to Reprocess a SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19 Claim for an Injured Employee Covered under Texas Government Code Section 607.0545 form can be found below: 

In addition, if a workers’ compensation claim was never filed on behalf of a first responder who contracted COVID-19, and the claim would now be untimely, the employee or their survivors can still file a claim up until December 14, 2021. Normally, an employee is required to file a claim within 1 year of injury or illness. For those who were impacted in 2020 and never filed a workers’ compensation claim, you have only until December 14, 2021, to do so.

The employee or survivor should make a request that a claim is initiated in writing to the employer and in addition, a claim should be filed directly with DWC as follows:

If the employee is NOT deceased, the employee should file DWC Form-41 with DWC prior to December 14, 2021.

If the employee IS deceased, then the survivors should file DWC Form-42 with the DWC prior to December 14, 2021.

The above forms can be found here.

If you have any questions, please contact us IMMEDIATELY so we can assist you before the deadline.  DWC also has information on their website about SB 22 here.