Care-facility worker who contracted COVID-19 not entitled to jobless benefits, judge says

An Iowa woman who contracted COVID-19 while working in a treatment facility where residents ignored face-mask requirements is not entitled to state unemployment benefits, an Iowa judge has ruled.

Since 2015, Erin Phillips had worked as a substance abuse counselor in a residential treatment facility run by Trinity Medical Center. Due to the pandemic, Trinity required all employees and residents to wear masks. Residents who failed to comply could be issued warnings and, in theory, could be discharged from the facility after receiving three such warnings.

Shortly before she quit, Phillips worked with an unmasked resident who stated he or she had COVID-19 symptoms. The resident told Phillips he or she had informed a nurse of the symptoms and had simply been sent back to their room. The resident subsequently tested positive for COVID-19, as did another resident who frequently did not wear a face-mask inside the facility.

Both residents had been warned multiple times, but were never discharged from the facility.

Read more: https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2021/06/01/care-facility-worker-who-contracted-covid-19-not-entitled-to-jobless-benefits-judge-says/