WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Republicans have reportedly abandoned a provision from a proposed $900 billion Covid-19 stimulus package that would shield health care providers and other employers, who have followed recommended safety guidelines, from virus exposure claims.
The immunity provision was one of the sticking points to completion of the economic relief package, the second since March, and lawmakers are up against a Friday at midnight deadline before a temporary funding bill runs out. Work to finalize the package is likely to spill over into the weekend.
Leading the opposition to the liability shield has been Illinois Senator Dick Durbin, a Democrat and a “creation of and servant to the trial bar,” according to Chicago-based political analyst, Chris Robling.