Bill 191 explained in plain English
Workplace Safety and Insurance Amendment Act (Presumption Respecting COVID-19), 2020
Ontario legislature bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
At a glance
Official Legislative Assembly of Ontario snapshot for 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. Representative vote breakdowns appear when the Assembly publishes an Ayes and Nays page for the bill.
Our plain-language take, written for civic education.
Source: By PoliticalData.ca
Bill 191 establishes a presumption that COVID-19 is a work-related occupational disease for workers in essential businesses who test positive.
Bill 191, also known as the Workplace Safety and Insurance Amendment Act (Presumption Respecting COVID-19), 2020, creates a special rule for certain workers. It presumes that COVID-19 is a work-related illness for workers in "essential businesses" if they test positive for the disease. This presumption applies to positive tests received on or after January 25, 2020. If a claim for COVID-19 benefits was already filed and is pending, or if it was denied before the law came into effect, the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (the "Board") or the Appeals Tribunal will decide or reconsider the claim based on this new rule.
- Amends the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997 to add a new section (15.0.1) concerning COVID-19.
- Establishes a presumption that COVID-19 is an occupational disease for workers in businesses designated as "essential businesses" under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act, if the worker tests positive for COVID-19.
- Specifies that this presumption applies to positive COVID-19 tests received on or after January 25, 2020.
- Clarifies that the presumption applies whether the worker is an employee or otherwise engaged, and regardless of when the business was listed as essential.
- Requires the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board or Appeals Tribunal to decide pending COVID-19 claims based on this new presumption.
- Vacates denials of COVID-19 claims made before the Act came into force, allowing workers to refile their claims to be decided under this new presumption.
- Workers employed by businesses designated as "essential businesses" in Ontario.
- The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board.
- The Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal.
- Workers in essential businesses who test positive for COVID-19 have a presumed right to have it considered a work-related occupational disease.
- The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board and Appeals Tribunal have a duty to decide pending claims and reconsider denied claims based on the new presumption.
- Workers whose claims were denied before the Act came into force have the right to refile their claims.
- The Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.
- The presumption applies to positive COVID-19 tests received on or after January 25, 2020.
- The Act received Royal Assent on a date not specified in the provided text, but it is noted as having passed this stage.
- The specific list of "essential businesses" is determined by orders made under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act, and is not detailed within Bill 191 itself.
- The bill does not specify the exact date of Royal Assent, only that it comes into force on that day.
- The bill does not detail the specific process or timeline for refiling vacated claims, only that workers "may" refile them.
- The bill does not specify any maximum financial benefits or coverage limits for claims made under this presumption.
Adds a new section that presumes COVID-19 is a work-related occupational disease for workers in essential businesses who test positive. It also provides rules for how pending or previously denied claims related to COVID-19 should be handled.
Source: Section 1
Orders made under this Act define which businesses are considered "essential businesses" for the purpose of Bill 191.
Source: Section 15.0.1 (1)
Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. It is written by PoliticalData.ca for civic education, automatically checked and spot-reviewed before publishing.
Official textProcess Snapshot
Vote Summary
This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.
No published representative vote breakdown
This bill is still moving through the process. When a recorded division is published, representative positions can be listed here.
Official sources
Status, sponsor, votes, and timeline on this page are drawn from these official legislative sources and public records. Each summary above is attributed to its own source.
How this data is sourced