Skip to content
On June 2, 2020, Virginia attorney Jeffrey J. Downey presented one of the first legal seminars addressing potential legal liability for patients who contract Covid-19 while at a nursing homes or assisted living facilities. The presentation was sponsored by the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association.
“This was one of my first Zoom meetings” explained Downey, “but there were a lot of issues that we covered, including attempts by Governors in each state to create immunity for healthcare providers where their patients contract Covid-19. We also discussed death certifications or the process by which a doctor officially certifies a cause of death. If you have a loved one who died because of Covid-19 due to exposure in a nursing home or assisted living facility, its also important that patients opt out of any jury trial waiver forms that they may have signed. The Trump administration had abolished an Obama regulation that prohibited the practice of presenting such Jury trial waivers to patients being admitted to nursing homes and now most large chains are using these forms to limit a patient’s civil rights.”
View the summary of the important legal issues relating to Covid-19.