By Bob Katzen

The House, on a voice vote without a roll call, gave initial approval to legislation that would provide that any condition of impairment of health caused by an infectious disease resulting in total or partial disability or death to an employee of a correctional facility would be presumed to have been suffered in the line of duty, unless shown otherwise by competent evidence.

“Corrections officers work in an inherently high-risk environment where close quarters and daily physical interactions make exposure to infectious disease an occupational hazard unlike almost any other profession,” said sponsor Rep. Mike Finn (D-West Springfield). “This legislation recognizes that reality by ensuring that when an officer gets sick, they aren’t forced to fight a bureaucratic battle to prove where they contracted an illness that may be impossible to trace to a single exposure. It’s the least we can do for the men and women who keep our correctional facilities safe.”