Do you support this bill?

Senate Bill S6078

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Relates to permitting certain claims for compensation based on death due to COVID-19 in memory of Joseph Fletcher

download bill text pdf

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Finance Committee

Please enter your contact information

Home address is used to determine the senate district in which you reside. Your support or opposition to this bill is then shared immediately with the senator who represents you.

Optional services from the NY State Senate:

Create an account. An account allows you to officially support or oppose key legislation, sign petitions with a single click, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Include a custom message for your Senator? (Optional)

Enter a message to your senator. Many New Yorkers use this to share the reasoning behind their support or opposition to the bill. Others might share a personal anecdote about how the bill would affect them or people they care about.

Actions

Votes

co-Sponsors

2025-S6078 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:
A695
Current Committee:
Senate Finance
Law Section:
Workers' Compensation Law
Laws Affected:
Add §3-a, Work Comp L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:
S8544, A9804

2025-S6078 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Enacts the "Joseph Fletcher act"; permits certain claims by essential employees for compensation based on death due to COVID-19 which were previously denied or not timely filed.

2025-S6078 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S6078 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf 

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6078
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               March 5, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sens. PARKER, FERNANDEZ, HELMING, JACKSON, RHOADS, ROLISON
   -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to
   the Committee on Labor
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend the workers' compensation law, in relation to certain
   claims for death benefits based on death due to COVID-19 in memory  of
   Joseph  Fletcher; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon
   the expiration thereof
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Short  title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
 the "Joseph Fletcher act".
   § 2. The workers' compensation law is amended by adding a new  section
 3-a to read as follows:
   § 3-A. REOPENING OF CLAIMS FOR COVID-19 DEATH BENEFITS. 1. A CLAIM FOR
 DEATH  BENEFITS  BASED ON A DIAGNOSIS OF COVID-19 RESULTING IN THE DEATH
 OF THE ESSENTIAL EMPLOYEE WHOSE EXPOSURE WAS SUSTAINED IN SERVICE AS  AN
 ESSENTIAL WORKER AS DEFINED BY EXECUTIVE ORDER 202 ISSUED MARCH SEVENTH,
 TWO  THOUSAND  TWENTY AND EXPIRED JUNE TWENTY-FOURTH, TWO THOUSAND TWEN-
 TY-ONE SHALL NOT BE DISALLOWED AS BARRED BY SECTION EIGHTEEN OR  SECTION
 TWENTY-EIGHT  OF  THIS CHAPTER IF SUCH CLAIM IS FILED WITHIN ONE YEAR OF
 THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS SECTION. ANY SUBSEQUENT CLAIMS MAY  BE  FILED
 AFTER  SUCH PERIOD IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTIONS EIGHTEEN AND TWENTY-EIGHT
 OF THIS CHAPTER.
   2. THE BOARD SHALL PERMIT THE FILING OF CLAIMS FOR DEATH BENEFITS  DUE
 TO  COVID-19  WHICH  WERE  PREVIOUSLY  DENIED DUE TO SECTION EIGHTEEN OR
 TWENTY-EIGHT OF THIS  CHAPTER  PRIOR  TO  THE  EFFECTIVE  DATE  OF  THIS
 SECTION, AND SHALL, UPON APPLICATION, RE-HEAR AND DETERMINE SUCH CLAIMS.
   §  3.  This  act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be
 deemed repealed two years after such date.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD01700-01-5

Comments

Open Legislation is a forum for New York State legislation. All comments are subject to review and community moderation is encouraged.

Comments deemed off-topic, commercial, campaign-related, self-promotional; or that contain profanity, hate or toxic speech; or that link to sites outside of the nysenate.gov domain are not permitted, and will not be published. Attempts to intimidate and silence contributors or deliberately deceive the public, including excessive or extraneous posting/posts, or coordinated activity, are prohibited and may result in the temporary or permanent banning of the user. Comment moderation is generally performed Monday through Friday. By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and verify you are over 13.

Create an account. An account allows you to sign petitions with a single click, officially support or oppose key legislation, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.