As more states report cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19), you should know about your legal rights and the risks associated with coronavirus. 

Microsoft, SAP, JPMorgan Chase, and hundreds of other employers have imposed restrictions on travel, domestic as well as international. Countless supply contracts are being disrupted by factory shutdowns in the areas most affected by COVID-19. Facebook, Stanford University, SXSW, and Google have canceled long-planned business conferences and events.

Two people have already died in Florida out of at least a dozen Florida residents that state health officials say have tested positive for the new strain of coronavirus that is now quickly spreading across the United States and other parts of the world.  

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spoke at a press conference at Port Everglades on Saturday where Vice President Mike Pence as well as Florida Senators Rick Scott and Marco Rubio addressed the spread of the virus and the danger to the state’s elderly population.  “This is a virus that has a disproportionate impact on that community,” DeSantis said.

Legal Matters Involving Coronavirus 

Whether you are a big or small office, and whether you have offices overseas or not, every employer (and employee) should have a disaster plan in place for the coronavirus and other types of health crises as well as natural disasters. Companies should consider how to protect their employees and their productivity without running afoul of employment laws.

As an employer, the most important message to communicate is that employees should stay home from work when they are sick and telecommute if necessary.  With the global spread of coronavirus, companies should focus first and foremost on employee safety. Business continuity plus the well-being of your employees and clients is of the utmost importance. 

Employers can require that an infected or at-risk employee stay home from work if the employer has a reasonable objective belief that the employee poses a direct threat to the workforce.  An employee’s race, color, sex, national origin, or perceived or actual disability cannot be taken into account when assessing risk.

Employers cannot require employees to undergo medical exams and should avoid making unnecessary inquiries into an employee’s medical status.  The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), along with equivalent state and local laws, restrict an employer’s ability to ask questions about an employee’s medical condition. 

The Family Medical Leave Act provides job-protected unpaid leave for employees and their family members who are suffering from a “serious health condition.” If an employee or his/her immediate family member contracts the coronavirus, the FMLA could be triggered. 

Will insurance cover COVID-19 losses? Losses related to coronavirus could be covered under insurance depending on the type of loss, the type of coverage, and the terms and conditions of specific policies.  Policyholders should review their insurance coverage provisions.

Business interruption insurance could provide coverage for income and other losses.

The scope of coverage for coronavirus and other infectious disease-related losses will ultimately depend upon the specific language of each insurance policy. Remember, too, not every contract and governing law provides for a force majeure defense based on unforeseeable events outside the parties’ control. 

Next Steps

The main challenges in the next few weeks are to become informed on legal options, develop a risk management strategy, keep up with health guidelines, and exercise a certain degree of common sense. It is important that you consult with counsel regarding your legal rights in light of the coronavirus.

Corless Barfield Trial Group advises clients on numerous legal issues relating to the coronavirus and its effects, such as force majeure clauses in contracts, employment law matters, insurance law, negotiating commercial agreements in light of world events, and risk mitigation, among other issues.  For a free, no-obligation consultation, call Corless Barfield at 813-258-4998.

The proposal would eliminate the $10,000 no-fault coverage in 2018 while mandating motorists get at least $25,000 in coverage for bodily injury or death and $50,000 for bodily injury or death of two or more people.

Florida drivers are only required to carry personal injury protection of at least $10,000 to pay for medical benefits after an accident.  But the people pushing for House Bill 1063, i.e., the insurance industry, suggest $10,000 isn’t enough when health care costs are rising.

Abandoning no-fault for bodily injury, which provides coverage if motorists cause accidents that hurt someone else, would put more questions of medical coverage into the courts, as injured parties would seek to recoup expenses from at-fault drivers.

More than 90 percent of motorists have PIP and some form of bodily-injury coverage, which is why most motorists would be projected to see a savings from eliminating no-fault with HB 1063. However, the change could negatively impact health care premiums.

Since 2015, rates have gone up 25.7 percent. Meanwhile, all liability coverage has gone up 23.4 percent the past two years. The increases are due to rises in medical care, costs of vehicle body work, people driving more, and an increase in distracted drivers. How much you save depends on whom you are, how much you drive, and how many cars you insure.

Lawmakers supporting the bill predict the average driver will save about $81 a year for each vehicle they insure, but critics forecast costs will ultimately increase later. The costs would rise higher in Tampa Bay. In Hillsborough County, getting car insurance would cost $308 more on average for those who have the bare minimum now, according to a statewide report commissioned by the state’s Office of Insurance Regulation. In Pinellas, that would become a $385 annual increase. Rates vary depending on a county’s traffic density, percentage of uninsured drivers, and accident rates.

Currently, drivers and passengers get car damages and PIP paid for up to $10,000, no matter who is at fault in an accident. Drivers have to pay an additional cost to insurance companies to pay for bodily injuries, which cover them if they are at fault. The insurance industry is pushing to scrap PIP and instead require all motorists to carry coverage that includes bodily injury if they are at fault.

HB 1063 is now moving through the state legislature, which calls for eliminating Florida’s no-fault insurance plan. Consult a Corless Barfield Trial Group attorney to understand changes to automobile insurance policies and learn about your rights by calling 813-258-4998 if you are involved in a motor vehicle accident.