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In 2025, California workers\u2019 comp still covers COVID-19 if the employee contracts it at work. Presumptions under SB 1159 remain for frontline workers like healthcare and emergency services. Employers must report outbreaks, and employees retain access to medical treatment and wage replacement if infected while performing job duties.<\/p>\n
COVID-19 was like an unrelenting tsunami, continuously hitting cities and states across the country day after day. At its peak, confirmed cases in the U.S. exceeded 18 million.<\/p>\n
California was one of the states with the highest number of documented positive COVID-19 cases. Workers in various industries contracted the deadly virus and missed work as a result.<\/p>\n
Fortunately, a workers\u2019 compensation bill signed by California Governor Newsom in September 2020 provided protections and benefits for employees who contracted COVID-19 on the job.<\/p>\n
Police officers, firefighters, healthcare workers, or anyone working around potentially sick individuals were automatically eligible for benefits if they tested positive for COVID-19. The law did not require these employees to prove they contracted the virus while working.<\/p>\n
This presumption still applies in 2025 to protect frontline workers under SB 1159<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n The law also laid out specific criteria for workers in other industries who contracted COVID-19 and sought benefits.<\/p>\n Most notably, an \u201coutbreak\u201d needed to occur in their working environment to establish eligibility.<\/p>\n For employees working at entities with 5\u2013100 employees, an outbreak was considered to have occurred if at least 4 employees became ill in the same working environment within a two-week period.<\/p>\n For those at companies with more than 100 employees, an outbreak was defined as 4 percent or more of employees at the same location falling ill during the same timeframe.<\/p>\n Similar to frontline workers, these employees did not have to prove they contracted the virus while performing their job duties to be eligible for workers\u2019 comp benefits.<\/p>\n These outbreak definitions and presumptions remain applicable in 2025 under California law.<\/strong><\/p>\n For employees who work for an entity with 5-100 employees, an outbreak has occurred if at least 4 employees get sick in the same working environment within a two-week period.<\/p>\n For workers who are employed at a company with more than 100 employees, at outbreak has occurred if at least 4 percent of employees working in the same location within a two-week period become ill.<\/p>\n Similar to frontline workers, these workers also do not have to prove they contracted the virus while working on the job to be eligible for California workers\u2019 comp benefits.<\/p>\n The bill offered relief and served as a lifeline for many California workers who were worried about supporting their families while recovering or quarantining due to COVID-19.<\/p>\n According to the Insurance Journal, a widely respected insurance trade publication, one in every nine workers\u2019 compensation claims in California<\/a> during the height of the pandemic was COVID-19 related.<\/strong><\/p>\n Many workers also found comfort knowing the law protected them from termination for filing a COVID-related workers\u2019 comp claim.<\/p>\n While COVID-related claims have declined, key protections under SB 1159 continue to apply in 2025\u2014especially for first responders and essential workers. The law still acknowledges COVID-19 as a valid workplace injury when outbreak conditions are met.<\/p>\n California remains a leader in protecting workers facing long-term effects of COVID-19 contracted in the workplace.<\/p>\n To further explain how California\u2019s workers\u2019 compensation laws changed during the pandemic,Workers\u2019 Compensation for Other California Industries Affected by COVID-19<\/strong><\/h3>\n
How California Defines a Workplace COVID-19 Outbreak<\/strong><\/h3>\n
What classifies as an \u201coutbreak?\u201d<\/h3>\n
Why the 2025 COVID-19 Workers\u2019 Comp Law Still Matters for California Employees<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Diefer Law Group Discussed COVID-19 Workers\u2019 Comp on Fox 11 News<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Diefer Law Group appeared on KKFX Fox 11 Morning News.<\/strong><\/p>\n