Death of New Orleans’ Nurse From Coronavirus Highlights the Workplace Risks South Carolina’s Healthcare Workers Face

Healthcare workers face an increased risk of contracting the coronavirus, which can be very serious, leading to a need for a ventilator and a risk of death. Initial reports from the CNN show that healthcare workers who contract the coronavirus get sicker than other patients for unknown reasons. Sadly, a nurse in New Orleans recently died from coronavirus complications after she contracted the virus while performing her job and assisting patients. As the New Orleans Times-Picayune wrote: “Health care workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic are at a higher risk for infection. That may be especially true for nurses, who typically spend more time in a patient’s room carrying out procedures that require closer contact.”

Unfortunately, the same heightened risk for healthcare workers appears to be playing out in South Carolina’s Lowcountry. On April 1, MUSC reported that thirty-eight of its employees had contracted COVID-19, Roper Saint Francis reported that three of its employees contracted the coronavirus. Officials from Trident Medical said that they would not be releasing the number of its healthcare professionals infected by the coronavirus.

At the Steinberg Law Firm, we as all others can need to stay home to fight the coronavirus pandemic. We know our healthcare professionals and first responders are doing everything they can to stop the spread of the coronavirus and treat those who are infected. However, the lawyers at the Steinberg Law Firm can ensure that healthcare professionals and first responders infected with the coronavirus get all of the treatment and compensation they are entitled to under South Carolina’s workers’ compensation laws.

We recognize the heightened risk of contracting the coronavirus that healthcare workers face. We are incredibly grateful for the hard, dangerous work they are performing in our community, and we are ready to ensure their rights to workers’ compensation benefits from contracting coronavirus at work are enforced.