Don't Rely on Luck to Get Through the Next Health Crisis
Some people live by the credo, “I’d rather be lucky than good.” But as the Covid-19 pandemic taught us, it’s foolish to rely on luck alone to manage your business through a major health crisis. Complete and comprehensive preparation must take precedence.
Covid became a true turning point for many workplaces. The Human Resources function now is expected to understand public health challenges swiftly and manage them efficiently. So, how to prepare? Here are four steps to success:
- Assess the Risk to the Organization
Employers must remain updated on federal and local health guidance to help inform organizational strategies, while also considering questions like: Are employees at a heightened risk by being in the workplace during this crisis? What safety protocols will keep employees safe? - Adapt Quickly
Based on the risk assessment, employers must be prepared to adapt quickly, ensuring that safeguards in place don’t force employees to choose between their jobs and their health. - Communicate Thoroughly
At every stage, employers should keep employees in the loop. This means sharing the outcome of the risk assessment and clearly communicating any new workplace protocols. Employees should never have to wonder how their workplace is handling a crisis. - Embrace Change
During the early months of the pandemic, it took far too long for some businesses to adapt. Employers should be ready to make these decisions swiftly, and must embrace the changing landscape. This might mean having some employees work remotely while others remain in the workplace. Employers should think about such contingencies and be prepared to follow through if a public health crisis necessitates it.
Responding to the next health crisis will be much easier when you have planned and prepared ahead of time. Don’t leave it to luck. There’s too much at stake. Reach out to the Benefits team at The Reschini Group for more workplace guidance.
Copyright 2023 The Reschini Group
The Reschini Group provides these updates for information only, and does not provide legal advice. To make decisions regarding insurance matters, please consult directly with a licensed insurance professional or firm.
How Safe is Safe?: The Impact of COVID on Employer Practices Liability
In addition to the multiple and myriad changes already introduced to the business community by COVID-19, employers may now add possible increased liability and costs, perhaps ironically due to policies instituted to help stem the spread of the virus.
According to a 2021 report conducted in part by the Insurance Information Institute, employers need to be aware of the impact of the pandemic, particularly a shift in the burden of proof onto the employer for certain types of claimants and the changing exposure from people working from home.Workers compensation saw five consecutive years through 2019 where that line of business posted an underwriting gain, but the institute-sponsored study said that trend could change with COVID-19. Employer practices liability insurance (EPLI) – separate from workers compensation – has the potential to feel an impact from the pandemic, as well.Mask-wearing mandates, vaccination or regular COVID testing requirements, increased flexibility and the associated variables of home-based work, plus similar pandemic safeguards, may fall prey to varying levels of adherence.This lack of clarity has the potential for coverage-related issues, should employees become infected and require ongoing treatment for the virus. Similarly, this uncertainty feeds into the increased premium costs for employers to adequately protect their businesses.As new variants of the COVID virus develop and spread – even as vaccines become more refined and effective – the pandemic will continue to have wide, deep, and continuous ripple effects on all aspects of business, including EPLI and workers compensation insurance.For more information on these matters and how to properly prepare, contact the professionals at The Reschini Group today.
Copyright 2022 The Reschini GroupThe Reschini Group provides these updates for information only, and does not provide legal advice. To make decisions regarding insurance matters, please consult directly with a licensed insurance professional or firm.Source: https://www.iii.org/press-release/recession-pandemic-to-affect-p-c-underwriting-results-new-triple-i-milliman-report-shows-081320
The Reschini Blog: Nursing Home Turnover Presents Fresh Challenges
One of the more obvious ramifications of COVID-19 has been seen in high rates of staff turnover at nursing homes. But that trend had been in place long before the pandemic, with the median staff turnover at U.S. nursing homes of 94% and a mean rate of 128% in 2017 and 2018, according to industry journal Health Affairs.
Mean rates exceeded 100% across all three primary employee types studied — registered nurses (140.7%), certified nursing assistants (129.1%), and licensed practical nurses (114.1%).With facilities suffering this rate of turnover, exposure to lawsuits and insurance claims asserting wrongful termination or unsafe on-the-job conditions – especially in the era of pandemic – could escalate. Take, for example, a claim filed in 2018 that was never pursued to resolution. The claimant’s attorney picks up the case again in 2021, but the specifics of the situation have been lost to memory and time.Refuting those challenges becomes difficult, if not impossible, opening the door to financial exposure for the nursing home facility.Situations like this – which are not as rare as one might think – only serve to emphasize the need for diligent, comprehensive, up-to-date record keeping regarding all employees, their performance records, any disciplinary actions required, and the details of how their employment ends. Only documentation like this can prevent or limit potential damages being charged to the employer.An escalating rate of turnover cannot be used as an excuse for substandard record-keeping.Contact The Reschini Group for information on insurance-related matters affecting your organization.Download these resources about turnover and employment tracking:
Contact The Reschini Group with your questions or concerns regarding a need for Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI).
Copyright 2021 The Reschini GroupThe Reschini Group provides these updates for information only, and does not provide legal advice. To make decisions regarding insurance matters, please consult directly with a licensed insurance professional or firm.Source: https://skillednursingnews.com/2021/03/nursing-homes-have-94-staff-turnover-rate-with-even-higher-churn-at-low-rated-facilities/