Work can be stressful, and stress is one of the leading contributing factors to a heart attack. As a result, some employees who have sustained heart attacks on the job have attempted to claim the attack was work-related. This claim has an important impact because if the heart-attack is viewed as a work-related injury, workers’ compensation benefits can provide payment of medical bills, as well as disability income and other benefits.
While there have been past cases in which people were successful in making a workers’ comp claim after a heart attack on-the-job, these types of cases can be very complicated because it can often be hard to pinpoint any one specific reason why a heart attack occurred while at work.
It is the duty of the person making the workers’ comp claim to show the injuries or illness was directly caused by work tasks; so those seeking benefits after a heart attack should be prepared to make compelling arguments. A New York workers’ compensation law firm can help you make those arguments and state your case.
Making a Workers’ Comp Claim After a Heart Attack
Safety News Alert recently discussed a case in which a worker sustained a heart attack during what was described as a particularly stressful day at work. The man worked as a process operator at the glycol facility for Albany International Airport. The facility produces glycol for plane de-icers and filters used glycol from runoff water in the drainage system at Albany International Airport.
The man responded to a frozen valve at the treatment system at the plant in December of 2010 and he suffered a heart attack while working. He had been forced to work across a snow-covered area in freezing temperatures in order to get additional insulation from a storage unit in order to add insulation to try to fix the frozen valve.
The pressure was on at the time because if they were not able to resolve the issue quickly, the entire plant would need to be shut down. A cardiologist indicated that the stress associated with the need to immediately fix the crucial vale, coupled with being outside in freezing weather, were both significant contributing factors to causing the heart attack.
Unfortunately, the man did not regain consciousness following the heart attack and died a week after the incident had occurred. His wife filed a workers’ compensation claim, seeking death benefits. However, his employer, who was a service provider at the airport, denied the claim.
The widow appealed the denial, and the case went before a workers’ compensation law judge. The judge determined that the work contributed to the heart attack, and that the death those arose out of and in the course of employment. This meant workers’ compensation death benefits were appropriate. The Workers’ Compensation Board agreed with this decision made by the judge and, in a subsequent appeal, the New York Court of Appeals affirmed the decision to provide death benefits to the widow.
The case demonstrates that it is possible for a heart attack to be work related and result in a worker being entitled to benefits or his family being entitled to receive death benefits. However, there must be substantial proof that the heart attack was work related, and actually getting benefits can sometimes require multiple levels of appeal. Rosenberg, Minc, Falkoff & Wolff can assist with the entire process of fighting for benefits. Call our office as soon as possible to discuss your legal options.
