Coronavirus: Resources and Rapid Response Task Force

On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed the $1.9-trillion COVID-19 relief package, American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), into law. ARPA included a number of provisions that address COVID-19-related employment issues, including a 100-percent Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA) subsidy to provide assistance to eligible individuals (AEI). This subsidy applies to medical, dental, and vision plans, however, it does not apply to health flexible spending accounts.

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On Wednesday, March 24, 2021, the New York Senate unanimously passed legislation that repeals protections for nursing homes and hospitals against liability for COVID-19 malpractice lawsuits. The bill had previously passed the New York State Assembly.

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On March 12, 2021, Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a piece of legislation into law that requires virtually all employers in New York to provide leave to employees who receive the COVID-19 vaccination.  This legislation mirrors the existing leave of up to four hours that civil servants are granted for cancer screening pursuant to Section 159-b of Civil Service Law. The lawmakers’ reasoning for the bill is that granting public and private employees official time off to receive the vaccine, without having to exhaust their other piles of leave, will take the state one step closer to achieving herd immunity and ending the war against COVID-19.

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Attorneys and professionals across our 22-office, 11-state domestic footprint spend each day advising clients in a variety of industries on evolving legal and regulatory matters related to the coronavirus pandemic. These attorneys—comprising our national Coronavirus Rapid Response Task Force—collaboratively advise clients on the most critical questions that face them today, from employment and labor matters to fast-evolving regulatory concerns and unanticipated liability claims and business litigation.

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Our Coronavirus Employment and Labor Rapid Response Team exists to handle all of the most pressing issues facing employers in the unprecedented business environment created by the coronavirus pandemic. Led by senior attorneys from our Employment and Labor practice, this group provides daily counsel to a diverse client community on issues including workplace safety, changes to employment policies, interpretation of new state and federal laws and guidance, labor issues, layoffs and staff reductions, the defense of employment-related claims, and strategic communications to internal and external stakeholders.

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Goldberg Segalla’s Global Insurance Services practice—home to one of the largest collection of senior insurance coverage attorneys in the nation—serves multiple leading insurers on national and regional coronavirus coverage panels. Our dedicated Coronavirus Coverage Team includes many senior coverage partners across our national footprint, allowing us to coordinate and ensure consistency in our approach to coronavirus claims, while avoiding taking any position in one claim or in one jurisdiction that could disadvantage a client in another.

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Goldberg Segalla has been on the forefront of the evolving coronavirus global health crisis, advising our clients through alerts and presentations as well as the broader legal, insurance, and business communities through publications in major outlets.

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