House Introduces Pandemic Insurance Legislation, Including Cancelled Conference Coverage

Associations across the country, including ANCOR’s state provider association members, have faced significant revenue loss from conferences and other events being cancelled or postponed for the safety of participants due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As reported by ASAE, the association for associations of which ANCOR is a member, U.S. Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) has introduced legislation seeking to address this issue for future pandemics. ANCOR will analyze this legislation to see if it could also provide future insurance for services such as day and employment supports, which have seen significant revenue loss and even outright closure as they follow social distancing guidelines.

“ASAE endorsed a bill introduced on May 26 by Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) to create the Pandemic Risk Insurance Program, a system of shared public and private compensation for business interruption losses resulting from future pandemics or public health emergencies.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused severe financial strain on America’s associations resulting from cancelled meetings, conventions and trade shows not covered in existing insurance policies. Creation of a Pandemic Risk Insurance Program is one of ASAE’s primary asks of Congress to ensure future event cancellations resulting from a pandemic are covered.

Maloney’s bill (H.R. 7011) would require insurance companies to offer business interruption insurance policies that cover pandemics and ensure there is sufficient capacity to cover these losses and bolster the economy in the event of a future pandemic. Much like the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA), enacted shortly after the terrorist attacks on 9/11, the federal government would serve as a backstop to maintain market stability and to share the burden alongside the private insurance industry. ASAE looks forward to building support in Congress and among stakeholders for this important legislation.

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The bill would not be retroactive to cover COVID-19 losses but the program would be triggered after $250 million in aggregate industry losses and following any future declaration of a covered public health emergency or pandemic.”

Members seeking to keep track of Congressional aid for COVID pandemic, rather than measures aimed at future pandemics, might find these graphics by Politico Datapoint informative.