Healthcare is a diverse industry, ranging from individual practitioners and home health nurses, to ambulatory care centers and integrated systems with revenues in the billions of dollars. The risks along that spectrum also vary widely, but the insurance marketplace for healthcare organizations has been almost uniformly tight. Several insurance companies that underwrote healthcare business for decades have withdrawn from some classes, citing high loss ratios. In their place, new sources of capacity have emerged. Historically, the presence of new entrants has signaled competition and a loosening of terms, conditions and rates. Unfortunately for insureds, that is not happening in the current marketplace. It's a challenging environment that requires retailers to approach the renewal process differently.

While the COVID-19 pandemic offered new challenges, the healthcare market was already primed to be tough in 2021. After more than 10 years of a soft market and deteriorating results, it started to turn in the latter half of 2019. Launching into the new year, significant rate and retention increases, lower limits, and more policy movement toward claims made, was expected. However, the coronavirus amplified all of these issues, and while market adjustments were sorely needed, it remains unclear how long it will take to bring the business back to profitability.

The excess casualty market faces a rough road ahead. After a difficult 2020, the market is likely to remain hard at least through 2021 and possibly into the following year. Carriers continue to reduce limits and increase premiums as they grapple with the aftereffects of underpricing in the soft market. Much of the hardening is being driven by losses in auto, and also where social inflation is leading to more so-called ‘nuclear’ verdicts. Along with auto fleets, construction, real estate, habitational and hotels stand among the more difficult markets.

As a coverage line, directors and officers liability was already hardening before the coronavirus pandemic emerged in 2020. COVID-19 has accelerated tightening in the D&O marketplace, which has become much more challenging for both public companies as well as private organizations.

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, employers moved quickly to develop and implement remote work-from-home protocols to protect employees. Almost a year since it all began, employers are starting to develop return to work plans.

Fifteen years into the soft market cycle, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the Medical Professional Liability (MPL) market is turning around. Many will remember that the Long-Term Care (LTC) market began to show signs of hardening in 2017, and the Hospital segment began to follow suit in the second quarter of 2019. While the Facilities and Physician segments have lagged behind, they’re also turning the corner toward a firmer market. While the COVID-19 pandemic is to blame for many current challenges, this hard market was well on its way prior to the pandemic. In actuality, the battle against COVID-19 has functioned in many ways as a temporary pause button for the MPL marketplace, giving insureds a short period of respite due to moratoriums on litigation. However, significant market changes are anticipated for the remainder of the year and beyond. Understanding the 5 primary drivers of the tightening market can be important to helping clients comprehend the changes that are coming.

The term catastrophe became a part of everyday life this year as the global coronavirus pandemic spread across the country. With spring also came the "normal" catastrophes, including a spate of deadly thunderstorms and tornados. This was followed by an early start to a hurricane season that kept setting records through the summer, and a disastrous wildfire season for which the full scope of damages will not be known for some time.

Concerts. Festivals. Fairs. Sporting events. Live theater. Corporate events. Whether it is indoors or outdoors, we love to be entertained and inspired. We thrive on learning from experts and hearing from speakers we admire. And this is why the events industry is enormous. In the United States, business meetings, conferences, tradeshows and the like provided over 5.9 million jobs.

The impacts of COVID-19 have changed the way we approach much of life, including how Americans receive healthcare. Social distancing, intended to “flatten the curve” and prevent further spread of the coronavirus, has dramatically expanded the use of telemedicine in the area of behavioral healthcare.*

In insurance, hard markets present hard choices. Policyholders often face sharply higher rates and tighter terms and conditions at renewal, along with exclusions their expiring liability coverage did not impose. In these situations, incumbent carriers may offer an extended reporting period (ERP), which lets insureds file claims after the original policy’s expiration date. Buying an ERP, however, has significant risks that insureds and their agents should consider.

The coronavirus has transformed life for billions of people in just a few short weeks. Since the first U.S. COVID-19 case was reported on January 21st, the number of known cases has grown significantly nationwide, reaching pandemic status and straining healthcare systems. More information is becoming available day by day as the situation evolves.

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to grow, the directors and officers of public and private organizations are facing risks on two fronts: the economic impacts of COVID-19 and litigation. Adding to the challenge is a hardening insurance marketplace.

As Americans grow increasingly anxious about the impacts of COVID-19 and public life is limited by social distancing, food production demands are changing. Product sales at retail locations are reaching unprecedented levels. This doesn’t mean people are eating more – just that they’re eating at home due to the closure of restaurant dining rooms and other public spaces.

COVID-19 has infected millions of people and has taken so many lives around the globe. Unwilling to stand by and do nothing as the economy and our communities struggle, companies all around the U.S. are looking for ways to help fight the virus, ensure business continuity, and keep generating revenue.

As businesses of all sizes strive to protect their employees and preserve cash flow during the coronavirus pandemic, likely the last thing on most of their minds is employment practices liability (EPL) exposures. But EPL risks are higher during pandemics and other periods when employers are more likely to furlough, lay off or ask employees to work from home.