COVID-19 Legal Update: Florida

Workers' Compensation Administrative board/ commission

How does the state define an occupational disease?

440.151(2) Whenever used in this section the term "occupational disease" shall be construed to mean only a disease which is due to causes and conditions which are characteristic of and peculiar to a particular trade, occupation, process, or employment, and to exclude all ordinary diseases of life to which the general public is exposed, unless the incidence of the disease is substantially higher in the particular trade, occupation, process, or employment than for the general public. "Occupational disease" means only a disease for which there are epidemiological studies showing that exposure to the specific substance involved, at the levels to which the employee was exposed, may cause the precise disease sustained by the employee.

COVid-19 Specific Laws, agency declarations/ press releases, or enacted regulation?

CFO Patronis: DFS is Bringing Government to Life Remotely
3/19/2020

DWC Issues Notice on Telehealth & Telemedicine Services
3/30/2020

CFO Patronis Directs Florida to Provide Workers' Comp Coverage for Public Servants on the Front Line of COVID-19
4/1/2020

DFS Directive Suspends Time Frames fro Employer Payments, Reinstates Stop Work Orders and Changes Delivery Method of Info Brochures
4/15/2020

DFS Directive Allows Temporary Licenses
4/17/2020

DWC Issues Report on the Effect of COVID-19 on the Florida Workers' Compensation System
6/9/2020

DWC Issues Report on the Effect of COVID-19 on the Florida Workers' Compensation System
8/31/2020

Court Closures & Modified Call

Judge of Compensation Claims Updates - beginning 6/1/20, mediators will determine if mediations will be telephonic or otherwise.

Is the administrative court system closed or open?

Open, with skeleton crew.

Does this state have a shelter-in-place in order?

No - order was 4/3/20 to 4/30/20; phased re-opening now.

Any state-specific guidance on disability, unemployment, or health benefits for COVID-19?

Unemployment

Last Updated: 2/1/2021

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This document compiles certain state laws and websites relevant to the COVID-19 pandemic. State guidance and other government instruction have changed frequently. We thus may update this document over time.

Please do not hesitate to contact your account manager, resolution manager, or your other preferred contact at Gallagher Bassett with any questions.

Although we have gathered information relevant to COVID-19 and its impact on workers' compensation claims and your businesses, this is not legal advice, it does not include all pertinent information, nor should it be the basis for legal, claim, benefit, safety, or human resource-related decisions. If you would like guidance on legal issues arising from COVID-19, including whether a COVID-19 related claim is compensable under a specific state’s laws, please seek advice from legal counsel with expertise in the relevant subject areas and state laws. For Gallagher Bassett clients, if you have reported a workers’ compensation claim, then your resolution manager can assist.

A Further Note on the Statutes, Definitions, Cases, and Websites Cited in this Document. State law controls if a worker is entitled or not entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. Each state can approach this question differently, and the relevant statutes, standards of proof, regulating agencies, court precedent, and other aspects of a workers’ compensation claim vary between jurisdictions. As a general principle, state workers’ compensation laws provide medical and wage loss benefits to workers who suffer bodily injury due to an accident, or bodily injury due to an occupational disease. The relevant bodily injury must arise out of and occur in the course of employment. This document primarily compiles state definitions of “occupational disease.” With respect to diseases for which the employee may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits, the disease typically must arise from particular conditions of employment that make contracting the disease more likely than in the general population, or otherwise there must be a sufficient connection between a disease and workplace. Please consult the relevant state’s workers’ compensation act for the specific language applicable to an “occupational disease” claim.