A Heart Attack that Happens After Work Could Still Be Work-Related
Where and when a heart attack occurs does not control whether or not the heart attack is work-related, for recovery under Illinois workers’ compensation law. Instead, it will have to be shown that some act or aspect of the employment was a contributing cause to bringing it on.
Workers’ compensation benefits in Illinois can be recovered where the condition has a causal connection to the employment. The employment does not need to be the sole cause, however. So even where an employee has had a history of heart disease or hypertension, a heart attack can still be considered work-related for recovering benefits.
In order to show that the employment was a causative factor in the heart attack, it is necessary to have some proof of a particular act or aspect of the employment which could bring it about. Just being at work at the time is not enough. Nor is it enough merely to show that you were at work that day and it happened shortly afterwards. The employer may try to show, for example, that the heart disease was so progressed that any kind of ordinary exertion would bring on the heart attack. You can combat that argument with evidence, often from expert testimony of a cardiologist, that the employment activity or conditions were not the kind that people are exposed to generally. But instead, that there was some extra contributing factor.
Illinois workers’ compensation law will not discriminate against an employee and deny benefits just because he or she is older or has had certain conditions such as a weak heart or hypertension. As long as the connection is made between the heart attack and the employment, the recovery should follow. And it should not matter whether the heart attack happened at during work, during a lunch break, or at home in the evening.
We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys. Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.
