New York Nursing Home COVID-19 Injury & Negligence

young female nurse taking care of an old man

At least 6,000 nursing home residents have died in New York due to COVID-19, according to the New York State Department of Health. However, the numbers are likely much higher. The New York Post published an exposé in which an aide for Governor Cuomo admitted to hiding data regarding nursing home deaths from federal investigators, potentially concealing 9,000 COVID-19 related nursing home deaths in 2020 alone.

With Governor Cuomo recently signing a bill that repealed civil immunity for nursing homes, you may now be able to bring a claim against a negligent nursing home that caused your loved one’s illness or death due to their mishandling of COVID-19. Our dedicated legal team at Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C. can help. Contact us today for a free case review with an experienced COVID negligence lawyer who can explain your legal rights and options.

How Can Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C. Help with Your COVID-19 Injury Claim? 

If you are considering filing a New York COVID-19 lawsuit, the COVID-19 attorneys at Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C. can help by:

  • Explaining your legal rights – Coronavirus quickly swept the nation and many nursing homes and employers lagged behind in establishing safeguards to prevent the spread of disease. Our firm has been in place for more than 40 years and has helped navigate state and national disasters. We can explain your legal rights during this challenging time.
  • Investigating your claim – Our dedicated attorneys can use available resources and the discovery process to uncover evidence to support your claim.
  • Keeping you informed of the status of your case – We have locations all over New York City and can meet with you wherever is most convenient for you. We will keep you updated on the status of your case.  We can also meet with you over FaceTime, Zoom, Skype, and other apps.
  • Handle all communications on your behalf – You can focus on your loved one while we handle negotiations with the insurance companies and communications with other parties. Our staff speaks Spanish and has translators for many other languages to aid in communication.
  • Demand maximum compensation – Our legal team consists of more than 25 personal injury attorneys who will aggressively fight for the compensation you deserve. We have collectively recovered more than $1 billion on behalf of our deserving clients.

CDC Guidance for the Handling of COVID-19 Cases

As infection rates spread throughout New York and the rest of the country, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released guidance in an effort to minimize the spread and save lives.

The CDC directed that nursing homes and other long-term care facilities:

  • Actively monitor residents and new admissions for symptoms of COVID-19
  • Limit visits from family members and non-essential personnel
  • Establish restrictions for visitor communications that minimize physical contact, such as offering video calls
  • Require residents, staff, and visitors to wear masks and meet outdoors, when possible
  • Limit social activities
  • Prepare methods to notify visitors of current limitations regarding visitation
  • Educate staff about the risks of transmitting the virus to others
  • Designate at least one person within the facility to manage the facility’s infection prevention and control program
  • Ensure that they monitor CDC information for updated guidance and remain in close contact with local health organizations
  • Submit data regarding confirmed COVID-19 cases, available protective equipment, and levels of staffing to the CDC at least weekly
  • Notify staff, residents, and visitors about the risks of COVID-19 and what the facility is doing to minimize these risks
  • Screen staff at the beginning of work shifts for fever or other symptoms of coronavirus
  • Regularly test residents, visitors, and staff for coronavirus
  • Regularly clean and disinfect common areas, surfaces that residents and staff frequently touch, shared equipment, and resident quarters
  • Reinforce hand-washing procedures
  • Regularly replenish cleaning supplies and other supplies that help prevent and control infection, including hand sanitizer, soap, tissues, facemasks, face shields, trash cans, respirators, gloves, and gowns
  • Require staff to use a facemask and other PPE properly
  • Implement and honor generous sick leave policies so that staff members will not come to work when sick
  • Create a separate area in the facility for COVID-19 patients 

An experienced New York COVID-19 negligence lawyer can review business records and interview witnesses to determine whether the nursing home where your loved one was injured followed these protocol or took safety shortcuts that put your loved one in danger.

What to Do If a Loved One Died of COVID-19 Due to Negligence? 

While it may seem that the COVID-19 pandemic came out of nowhere, it is the job of nursing homes and healthcare facilities to plan for the worst. They must develop emergency preparedness plans so that if something unprecedented happens – like a pandemic, hurricane, or other natural disaster – they will be able to quickly respond. Ensuring that our most vulnerable populations are protected should have been the top priority for nursing homes. Unfortunately, many of them failed to aggressively respond to this crisis and put our loved ones in danger.

Statewide, there have been more than 41,000 deaths and more than 2 million people who have become ill with COVID-19, according to the New York State Department of Health. Individuals in institutionalized settings like nursing homes and assisted living facilities are at greater risk of infection due to shared quarters. Without an aggressive response, vulnerable residents can die or suffer lifelong consequences.

If your loved one died due to COVID-19 and you suspect that negligence played a role, it is vital that you contact a COVID-19 attorney who can investigate whether the nursing home violated safety protocol and caused your loved one’s death or illness. An experienced personal injury lawyer can analyze existing negligence principles and determine if they apply to your claim.

For example, a typical nursing home neglect claim would allege:

  • The nursing home had a contractual duty to provide competent care and supervision of your loved one
  • The nursing home failed to act in a reasonable manner
  • The nursing home’s failure caused your loved one’s injury or death

In the context of a COVID-19 lawsuit, our lawyers would establish that the nursing home failed to take reasonable measures that would have prevented the spread of the disease or to treat the ill. We will work to gather evidence to support this claim, such as:

  • Records of the nursing home not having adequate numbers of staff to handle new cases of COVID-19
  • Documentation that shows the nursing home failed to promptly respond to COVID-19 confirmations
  • Testimony from residents, past employees, or visitors about unsanitary conditions
  • Video evidence showing that care providers did not wash their hands or isolate COVID-19 patients

With over 40 years of experience helping NYC victims, our compassionate nursing home negligence lawyers understand the devastating effects that negligent nursing homes can have on residents and families. We will work tirelessly to hold them responsible for the pain your family has had to endure due to their reckless conduct during this global crisis.

Coronavirus Work Injury Claims

Our COVID-19 attorneys are also helping workers who were permanently injured or had a loved one die due to COVID-19 exposure in the workplace. Workers’ compensation insurance in New York provides benefits to workers who develop an illness due to workplace exposure.

You can file a workers’ compensation claim based on your infection of COVID-19 if you believe that you were exposed at work.

Follow these steps to initiate your claim:

  1. Tell your employer that you are sick.
  2. Put your notification to your employer in writing.
  3. Fill out Employee Claim Form C-3 and send it to the workers’ compensation board.
  4. Visit a doctor who is authorized to treat workers’ compensation patients.
  5. Inform the doctor that you believe you contracted COVID-19 at work.
  6. Ask your doctor to send a report to the insurance company and the workers’ compensation board that says that your COVID-19 is work-related.

Your employer’s workers’ compensation carrier may initially try to deny your claim. You may need the help of a New York coronavirus workplace rights attorney to gather evidence to support your claim, including:

  • The type and nature of your work
  • The location and frequency of your work
  • Your job duties
  • Your medical records
  • How you were likely exposed to COVID-19
  • The extent of your exposure
  • That COVID-19 exposure was prevalent in your workplace

Developing COVID-19 due to workplace exposure is more likely to occur in jobs where you work with the public or where there are more cases of COVID-19, such as in the healthcare industry.

If your claim is approved, you may be eligible for the following benefits:

  • Payment for medical treatment related to your illness
  • Partial wage replacement benefits
  • Funeral expenses up to $12,500 if your loved one worked in New York City, Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland, or Westchester Counties, or up to $10,500 in other New York counties

Contact Our COVID-19 Nursing Home Negligence Lawyers for Help with Your Claim 

If you believe that your loved one developed COVID-19 or you were infected at a nursing home where you work because of a negligent nursing home, contact an experienced personal injury lawyer who can inform you of your legal rights and options. Contact us today for a free case review with a compassionate attorney at Davis, Saperstein & Salomon, P.C.