Is a Heart Attack at Work Covered by Workers’ Compensation in Virginia?

As an employee, you’re entitled to workers’ compensation benefits if you suffer an accident on the job or develop an occupational disease. However, what about workers’ comp for heart attacks? Is a heart attack at work covered by workers compensation?

Types of Injuries Workers’ Comp Recognizes

The workers’ compensation system in Virginia recognizes two types of injuries:

• Acute injuries like falls from heights, electrocutions, burns, and other traumatic incidents. It’s usually easier to show that these injuries are work-related.
• Cumulative conditions like strain-related back injuries, carpal tunnel syndrome, degenerative disc disease, certain types of cancer, and heart disease.

The latter type of conditions are much more difficult to document as work-related since they develop over time and may also be subject to other factors, like age, weight, lifestyle, and genetics. 

Does Workers’ Compensation Cover a Heart Attack?

The answer to “Is a heart attack at work covered by workers compensation?” isn’t clear-cut. If you’re a police officer, an EMT, or a firefighter, the Heart and Lung Bill under the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Act protects your rights. The default assumption is that your heart attack was related to your job since emergency responders work in high-stress conditions.

In any other occupation, you must show a reasonable link between a heart attack and your job. If you suffered an electrocution or another type of workplace incident that could lead to cardiac arrest, you have a good chance of being able to prove that your condition was work-related. Otherwise, heart attack workers’ compensation coverage could be challenging to claim. 

Heart Attack and Workers’ Comp Eligibility

To qualify for work-related heart attack compensation, you’d need to show that:

• Your employment conditions required unusual exertion or strain, AND
• There’s a strong likelihood these conditions caused or significantly contributed to your heart attack

Workers’ comp benefits for heart attacks would only be available if these two factors are present. You can be almost certain that your employer’s insurance provider will dispute your claim. The insurance adjuster may argue that your heart attack likely occurred because of other factors, like obesity, age, smoking, or diabetes. 

Showing a Causal Link Between Your Job and Your Heart Attack

If you’re seeking benefits via heart attack at work insurance, you need a skilled attorney with a proven track record of settling similar cases. Your lawyer will look into your medical history and lifestyle, as well as your job duties and what you were doing at work right before you suffered the heart attack.

Your attorney will attempt to show that work-related stressors likely contributed to a heart attack. You may need additional proof, like a testimony from an independent medical authority.

In general, your chances of collecting compensation will be better if you don’t have a history of heart disease. However, a skilled lawyer may be able to show that your work environment aggravated a pre-existing condition. Your attorney will also guide you through the claim process and let you know what to say to a workers’ comp adjuster.

Did You Suffer a Heart Attack at Work? Call Geoff McDonald & Associates

Is a heart attack at work covered by workers compensation? Sadly, the answer is “not always.” Employees who suffer a heart attack on the job often face an uphill battle against insurance providers while struggling with disability and mounting medical costs.

If you’re dealing with the aftermath of a heart attack or stroke you suffered at work, contact us at Geoff McDonald & Associates. Our skilled lawyers will review your medical documentation and help you stand up for your employee rights.

Call (804) 203-0581 or contact us online for a free consultation.