19BPresumptions relating to certain employment in relation to COVID-19

19B Presumptions relating to certain employment in relation to COVID-19

19B Presumptions relating to certain employment in relation to COVID-19

(1) If a worker, during a time when the worker is engaged in prescribed employment, contracts the disease COVID-19 (also known as Novel Coronavirus 2019), then for the purposes of this Act, it is presumed (unless the contrary is established)—

(a) that the disease was contracted by the worker in the course of the employment, and

(b) the employment—

(i) in the case of a person to whom clause 25 of Part 19H of Schedule 6 applies—was a substantial contributing factor to contracting the disease, or

(ii) in any other case—was the main contributing factor to contracting the disease.

(2) A worker is taken to have contracted COVID-19 for the purposes of this Act if the result of a medical test—

(a) that complies with requirements prescribed by the regulations in relation to the disease, and

(b) that was carried out for the purpose of determining if the worker has contracted the disease,

is a result prescribed by the regulations in respect of the disease.

(3) A worker is taken to have contracted COVID-19 for the purposes of this Act if the worker is classified by a medical practitioner as having COVID-19, having satisfied the epidemiological or clinical criteria (or both) prescribed by the regulations for the purpose of making that classification.

(4) For the purposes of this Act, the date of the injury in relation to COVID-19 is the date of whichever of the following occurs first—

(a) the worker is diagnosed by a medical practitioner as having COVID-19 following a prescribed test result, as referred to in subsection (2),

(b) the worker is classified by a medical practitioner as having COVID-19, as referred to in subsection (3),

(c) the worker dies as a result of COVID-19.

(5) For the purposes of this Act, it is presumed (unless the contrary is established) that a worker the subject of a presumption under subsection (1) is incapable of work as a result of COVID-19 for the period starting on the date of the injury and ending (unless sooner ended by the death of the worker)—