Do You Have A Valid Covid-19 Wrongful Death Lawsuit?
Do You Have A Valid Covid-19 Wrongful Death Lawsuit?
Since the pandemic hit the United States full force back in March, there have been more than 9 million cases of this strain of the Coronavirus diagnosed in the country and more than 231,000 deaths. While there have been special laws enacted to protect employers and to handle Covid-19 claims, there are several wrongful death lawsuits being filed because of individuals getting the virus and then succumbing to the illness. Of course, whether you have the grounds to pursue a lawsuit because of the death of a loved one to Covid-19 depends on the factors surrounding how that individual got the virus and other details surrounding their death.
Several employers across the country are facing lawsuits by the families of workers who died from Covid-19 because of workplace exposure as essential workers. For these lawsuits to be filed, the families are bypassing workers’ compensation claims and must prove that there is gross negligence or willful and wanton misconduct by the employer. This could be failure to provide the appropriate safeguards and safety equipment and requiring the worker to perform his or her duties throughout the pandemic without the needed protection.
Nursing homes and assisted living facilities have been hit hard by the virus, and there have been reports of hundreds of patients being infected in a single facility. Most of these facilities were restricted during the pandemic, and some still are, not allowing in-person visitation, requiring telemedicine visits, and only allowing contact with the facility staff. With these protocol in place, the virus had to be spread either through the staff or vendors that entered the facility.
The families of these patients must prove that the facility and its staff acted negligently, failing to keep the virus contained by limiting contact of those with the virus from those who had tested negative. In some places, it has been alleged that patients who had been treated for the virus in a hospital setting were allowed to return back to their nursing home before their test was negative, so they could have still spread the virus.
If you lost a loved one who was a nursing home patient or a resident of an assisted living facility to Covid-19, the records and practices of the facility must be thoroughly reviewed to determine if negligence contributed to their death. If the facility was negligent, then you may be able to pursue a wrongful death claim against the facility. If your loved one died because of Covid-19 and you believe that their infection was the result of negligence because of their long-term care facility or employer, you should consult with a wrongful death attorney from Harlan Law. Call for a free case review today.