RICHMOND â Holly Zimmerman hasnât worked since July, when she fell ill from caring for COVID-19 patients.
âNurses take care of whoever walks in the door, risking our lives every day,â said Zimmerman, who has been a nurse for 34 years.
After catching the virus, sheâs had multiple seizures, experienced memory loss, and suffered severe respiratory infection. Sheâs stayed at home in Bassett, depleting her savings and 401(k). Sheâs sold her car, and her mortgage and student loans are in forbearance. She hasnât been able to receive workersâ compensation.
âThis is whatâs hurting our nurses today, the length of time to recover,â she said.
Virginia bill proposes retroactive pay for frontline responders who caught COVID-19
In the House version, nurses and firefighters who caught COVID-19 between March and December would be eligible for benefits. The Senate version has different dates. Author: Allison Bazzle, 13News Now Staff Published: 11:26 AM EST February 22, 2021 Updated: 11:20 PM EST February 22, 2021
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. Activists are pushing for the Virginia Senate to pass a bill that would pay first responders for any disability caused by contracting COVID-19 while on the job.
The bill, which passed the House of Delegates, establishes a presumption that COVID-19 causing the death or disability of health care providers is an occupational disease compensable under the Workers Compensation Act.
Lawmakers debate comp for frontline COVID workers: Call us heroes? Prove it!
With only a few days left during the 2021 special legislative session, the House of Delegates and Senate are split on when workers should be eligible to apply for benefits.
and last updated 2021-02-22 18:27:07-05
RICHMOND, Va. Both chambers of the Virginia General Assembly agree that frontline healthcare workers and first responders should be able to apply for workers compensation if they contract COVID-19 on the job. With only a few days left during the 2021 special legislative session, the House of Delegates and Senate are split on when workers should be eligible to apply for those benefits.
They didnât quite get it done in a week.
But Virginia lawmakers still mobilized quickly to pass emergency legislation aimed at expanding the stateâs pool of COVID-19 vaccinators â a bipartisan priority as health officials prepare to ramp up large-scale vaccination events over the next few months.
Sen. Siobhan Dunnavant (R-Henrico) said building a qualified workforce has been a limiting factor as local health districts work to expand their immunization efforts to a broader swath of Virginians. A practicing OB-GYN, Dr. Dunnavant was the lead patron on the Senate version of a bill that allows any qualified health care provider in Virginia to volunteer as a vaccinator.
:
Advocates on a Zoom lobby call with Del. Glenn Davis (R-Virginia Beach).
Lobby days are an important tradition in Virginia politics, when advocacy groups bring their members together at the state capitol to hold demonstrations and speak with lawmakers face-to-face. COVID-19 has changed all of that.
The Virginia Citizens Defense League, a group which holds its well-known lobby day on the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, organized a car rally this year instead of a more traditional one which would likely not meet Gov. Ralph Northam’s social distancing standards.
Many other advocacies are choosing to take their work entirely online.