For Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and congressional Republicans, the “COVID 4” bill that Congress and the White House hope to pass by early August must contain liability protection from frivolous lawsuits for businesses, medical workers, schools and other entities.  According to the Daily Mail, more than 770 COVID-based lawsuits had been filed by May 4 against hospitals, nursing homes, gyms, airlines, and cruise lines, including class actions such as the lawsuit against Ticketmaster over canceled live events.  Though a growing number of states have been passing immunity measures, they appear to be mostly for hospitals and nursing homes, and a national plan that creates a standard legal safe harbor in all fifty states is needed. 

Small businesses in particular are concerned about the threat of legal action even though they’ve spent to keep their businesses and customers safe.  Republicans want a limited safe harbor that is not blanket immunity and would sunset after several years.  But when House Democrats passed their version of a COVID 4 bill, the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, H.R. 6800, in May, it had no liability language and would require the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to issue a COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard.  

At a May 18 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing entitled, “Examining Liability During the COVID-19 Pandemic,” Democrats argued that what is really needed is not liability protections for businesses, but a clear standard such as that from OSHA.  However, the DC Circuit Court dismissed an AFL-CIO petition to force an OSHA Emergency Temporary Standard for COVID-19, and attorneys for business groups argued that OSHA’s guidance documents, website FAQs, and utilization of existing regulations is best insofar as being more agile than a standard to deal with the almost daily changes from the CDC.  These attorneys also suggested that during a pandemic, employers need agency guidance more than enforcement.

Share:

Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
LinkedIn
Email
Reddit

Connect on Social Media

Similar Content

International Housewares Association Announces New Total Market Research Report For Home And Housewares Industry

The International Housewares Association (IHA) has launched the 2025 IHA State of the Industry report, a new total market resource for the home and housewares industry. The first of the report’s three installments, which provides data and analysis on U.S. market size by category and retail channel, was published today on IHA’s independent news and information platform, HomePageNews.com.

Read More »

International Housewares Association Partners With Quickcode To Help Members Navigate Tariffs

Members of the International Housewares Association (IHA) now have access to new tools to help them keep up to date on rapidly changing tariffs, regulations and rulings through the organization’s new collaboration with Quickcode. The partnership, which features discounted pricing to Quickcode’s AI-powered platform, is one more way IHA is helping members navigate tariffs and informing, supporting and enabling them to lead in the global marketplace.

Read More »
Get The Latest Updates

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

No spam, notifications only about new member updates & products.

On Key

Related Posts

International Housewares Association Announces New Total Market Research Report For Home And Housewares Industry

The International Housewares Association (IHA) has launched the 2025 IHA State of the Industry report, a new total market resource for the home and housewares industry. The first of the report’s three installments, which provides data and analysis on U.S. market size by category and retail channel, was published today on IHA’s independent news and information platform, HomePageNews.com.

U.S. Retail Intelligence – May

April 30 – Import Gains Ahead of Tariffs Contributed to GDP Decline in Q1The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reported real gross domestic product decreased

International Housewares Association Partners With Quickcode To Help Members Navigate Tariffs

Members of the International Housewares Association (IHA) now have access to new tools to help them keep up to date on rapidly changing tariffs, regulations and rulings through the organization’s new collaboration with Quickcode. The partnership, which features discounted pricing to Quickcode’s AI-powered platform, is one more way IHA is helping members navigate tariffs and informing, supporting and enabling them to lead in the global marketplace.

Picture of IHA

IHA

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit dolor

Log in to gain access to your permitted IHA resources.

Don’t have an account? Register here now!