A New York appeals court has reversed a decision to disallow a COVID-19 psychological injury claim that had been filed by an elementary school teacher.
The New York Appellate Division on March 28 determined that the state’s Workers’ Compensation Board wrongly ruled against the teacher, finding that the board failed to consider the claimant’s “particular vulnerabilities” that made her susceptible to injuries from COVID-19.
The teacher filed for workers comp in October 2020, claiming that she experienced a “dangerous exposure” to the virus in the workplace, which led to her sustaining psychological injuries.
The employer controverted the claim and both a workers comp judge and the comp board upheld that decision.
While the record established the teacher suffered from mental health issues, the workers comp judge found that the “conditions that … claimant is claiming are the result of the stress that was no greater than that which occurred in the normal work environment,” according to the appellate ruling.
On appeal, the teacher argued that the workers comp board applies “disparate burdens to claimants seeking compensation for a physical injury as compared to those seeking compensation for psychological injury,” in violation of the state’s workers comp law.
The appellate court agreed, writing that the burden placed on claimants seeking benefits for mental injuries is “no higher than the burden placed on those seeking benefits for physical injuries.”
The court remanded the case to the comp board for further proceedings.