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PENNSYLVANIA RECORD

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Gov. Wolf vetoes bill that would have given businesses some protection from COVID-19 lawsuits

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Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf

HARRISBURG – Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf has vetoed legislation passed by the General Assembly which extended immunity protections from liability connected to COVID-19 to a diverse array of health care entities and other businesses.

According to the governor, the protective auspices of the law were too expansive.

“This legislation provides broad, overreaching immunity from civil liability during the current pandemic. I support, and provided, protections against liability for emergency and disaster services activities taken by health care practitioners under my May 6, 2020 executive order,” Wolf said.

“However, this bill significantly expands these protections by limiting liability to various entities, including manufacturers, distributors, labelers and users of personal protective equipment, business services and covered providers. Shielding entities from liability in such a broad fashion as provided under this bill invites the potential for carelessness and a disregard for public safety.”

Per the language of House Bill 1737, the legislation stated that the above entities “shall not be civilly liable for damages or personal injury relating to an actual or alleged exposure to COVID-19, absent a showing, by clear and convincing evidence, of gross negligence, recklessness, willful misconduct or intentional infliction of harm”, and when efforts were made to follow health guidelines.

After facing initial criticism in the wake of his May 6 executive order for its liability protections given to doctors, nurses and health care providers, Wolf recently amended it to include liability protections for restaurant owners and their employees, connected to enforcement of the mask mandate in effect statewide.

During the pandemic, lawsuits have been filed against businesses who enforce a “mask mandate with no exceptions”, such as Western Pennsylvania-based supermarket chain Giant Eagle. Generally, the plaintiffs in those actions allege they qualify for exemptions to wearing a mask on the business’s premises.

Wolf opined that immunity shouldn’t be extended to businesses which are not in compliance with government health orders.

“COVID-19 immunity protections need to be paired with worker protections, including paid sick leave for employees. Providing immunity for a business that does not rigorously comply with public health orders does not ensure the safety of the public, its employees and is not in the public interest,” according to Wolf.

“At a time when the COVID-19 virus is spreading rapidly, we need to be taking measures to ensure compliance with public health orders and improve safety practices. We should not be providing protection for non-compliance or carelessness.”

Meanwhile, the Pennsylvania Coalition for Civil Justice Reform commended the efforts of the state legislature in passing HB 1737, and its executive director Curt Schroder called the legislation “well-considered.”

“The General Assembly understood that in the current environment, businesses and health care providers, following government orders and guidelines, should be protected from opportunistic lawsuits. HB 1737 was well-considered,” Schroder said.

“The bill was drafted, debated, and passed to protect the heroes of this pandemic, while still holding accountable bad actors engaged in intentional conduct or gross negligence who were not following health orders and guidelines. This reasonable approach is the right approach for Pennsylvania.”

Schroder predicted an oncoming wave of litigation that would prove “devastating” to businesses that face “a bleak outlook for economic recovery," and specified that HB 1737’s liability protections would have only been extended to those following government orders.

“HB 1737 only extends liability protection to those businesses, schools, colleges and universities, child- care centers, and health facilities that do comply with health orders and government standards,” Schroder said.

“They would receive no protection under the bill unless they complied with health orders. It is difficult to understand what the Governor finds objectionable in a bill that meets the criteria he has set forth.”

His thoughts were echoed by Pennsylvania Manufacturers Association President and CEO David N. Taylor.

“Pennsylvania’s manufacturers are deeply disappointed that Gov. Wolf has prioritized the litigation industry above everyone who will ultimately fight and win the battle against COVID-19 in the Commonwealth,” Taylor stated.

“This bill was a targeted, temporary, and necessary response to the threat of frivolous lawsuits by Pennsylvania's litigation industry, which views the COVID-19 pandemic as a business opportunity.”

A combined statement from the Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association and Pennsylvania Association for Justice lauded Wolf’s decision to veto HB 1737.

“HB 1737 was nothing more than a grotesque effort by massive corporations, manufacturers, hospitals, and nursing homes to shield themselves from liability when their negligent actions cause injury or death,” PTLA President Dan Jeck and PAJ President Paul Lagnese said.

“The priorities in a pandemic should always be about protecting Pennsylvanians, but what we saw instead was a hastily-passed bill that would have been a gift to businesses and hospitals engaging in bad conduct that harmed workers and families.”

Both the PTLA and PAJ have been financially supportive of Wolf’s candidacy through the years.

Donation records show that the PTLA has donated $1,524,000 to Wolf’s campaign, where the PAJ has donated $108,000.

From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com

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