US businesses ask patrons to waive right to sue if they contract COVID-19

WASHINGTON (AP) — As businesses reopen across the United States after coronavirus shutdowns, many are requiring customers and workers to sign forms saying they won’t sue if they catch COVID-19.

Businesses fear they could be the target of litigation even if they adhere to safety precautions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state health officials. But workers’ rights groups say the forms force employees to sign away their rights should they get sick.

The liability waivers, similar to what President Donald Trump’s campaign is requiring for people to attend a Saturday rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, would protect businesses in states that don’t have liability limits or immunity from coronavirus-related lawsuits.

So far, at least six states — Utah, North Carolina, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Alabama — have such limits through legislation or executive orders, and others are considering them.

Business groups such as the US Chamber of Commerce are lobbying for national liability protections.

The novel coronavirus has sickened more than two million people in the US and killed more than 115,000, according to Johns Hopkins University.

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