Comp court denies worker’s COVID injury claim
Reprints
A Tennessee workers compensation court ruled Monday that a worker who alleged he was injured after contracting COVID-19 on the job was not entitled to benefits.
The Tennessee Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims granted a motion to dismiss filed by Facility Installation Service in a case by Darold Swanson, who claims he contracted COVID-19 from a co-worker.
Mr. Swanson said he was hospitalized in the intensive care unit several times, and that he continues to suffer from atrial fibrillation and blood clots in his lungs and heart because of his injuries.
Mr. Swanson filed for workers comp benefits in July 2023, two years after he allegedly contracted the virus at work. The employer and insurer challenged the claim because it was filed too late, and because Mr. Swanson failed to cooperate in scheduling mediation and never produced medical records.
In March, Mr. Swanson filed a motion seeking additional time to obtain medical evidence, but he failed to appear for an April 1 hearing, the ruling states.
In dismissing the claim, the court wrote that Mr. Swanson lacked “specificity or any explanation as to what type of incapacity he alleges or how long it lasted,” and that he never explained what would have prevented him from filing his workers comp claim within one year of the date of injury.
The court dismissed the case with prejudice, meaning Mr. Swanson is not permitted to refile the claim.
