Commentators and lawyers continue to make blanket statements regarding lack of business interruption coverage for losses caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). They contend that coronavirus-related losses cannot satisfy the “direct physical loss of or damage to [covered] property” language contained in many policies to trigger coverage in the first place ...
COVID-19 brought a tremendous disruption of normal daily life/business affecting personal life and businesses alike. People and companies/ institutions alike are in continuous assessment of solutions and compromises to mitigate the impact of the COVID – 19 pandemic. In the context of a continuously evolving environment, we all need to adapt and try to keep control on negative impact ...
While the financial impact of quarantines and shelter-in-place orders will inevitably reach into every industry and every corner of the economy, companies in the hotel, restaurant, travel, retail and manufacturing sectors have already sustained significant business interruption losses. Much of the commentary from insurers and even some government agencies has been presumptively negative about the prospects for coverage ...
On 15 March 2020, the South African President declared a national state of disaster in terms of the Disaster Management Act, 2002. A number of measures have since been implemented by the government to counteract the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19), and several regulations, directives and guidelines have consequently been published ...
Not only are healthcare providers under attack in the daily battle against the coronavirus, criminal actors are quickly taking advantage of relaxed HIPAA enforcement and standards, teleworking and the general intensity of the situation to exploit patient and other confidential information ...
In times of emergency, the Secretary of Health and Human Services (the "Secretary") has authority to issue temporary waivers or modifications of certain Medicare, Medicaid, CHIP, and HIPAA requirements. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services ("CMS") has released a substantial number of waivers in response to the coronavirus national emergency ...
On March 17, 2020, the Trump administration announced an expansion of Medicare coverage for virtual health services. The Medicare expansion is intended to make medical offices more available to people who need to be seen in-person and to mitigate the spread of the novel Coronavirus. Medicare can now pay for office, hospital, and other visits furnished via virtual services across the country, including a patient’s place of residence, starting March 6, 2020 ...
Telehealth is not a new concept, but it has been accelerated to the forefront recently by government mandated social distancing. While all of the "stay-at-home" orders issued across the country to date have included exceptions that permit individuals to leave their homes to seek medical treatment, providers may feel an obligation to offer telehealth services to protect not only their patients, but also the provider's staff, and to support the national effort to "flatten the curve ...
The COVID-19 outbreak has impacted the manufacturing, transportation and supple chains underpinning countless aspects of trade and commerce on a global basis. Additionally, the shelter-in-place orders have caused nonessential businesses to shut down, resulting in many of them being unable to meet their contractual obligation. Force Majeure Whether coronavirus can be considered a force majeure depends on the wording of the provision ...
On 6 April 2020, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (“ICASA”) published the Information and Communications Technology (“ICT”) COVID-19 National Disaster Regulations (the "Regulations"). The stated purpose of the Regulations is to prescribe the minimum standards to which all licensee (electronic communication services and broadcasting services) must adhere for the duration of the National State of Disaster ...
In order to allow telecommunications´ users connectivity in case that, due to force majeure, they cannot pay their monthly bills, the Ministry of Transport and Telecommunications has agreed with some operators of mobile and fixed telecommunication services in the country, the establishment of a " Solidarity Connectivity Plan "that will be effective from April 1, 2020 ...
Associate Partner Sarmis Spilbergs and Associate Mikijs Zimecs have prepared a sample of a Privacy Policy that may help employees to process data related to COVID-19 in accordance with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation ...
On April 6, 2020, the National Consumer Service (SERNAC) published the "Interpretative Circular on distance contracts during the COVID-19 pandemic", which seeks to set general guidelines regarding distance contracting with consumers during the constitutional state of catastrophe due to public calamity. To safeguard the basic rights embodied in Law No ...
Businesses are experiencing devastating losses due to mandated restrictions and shutdowns, as well as the cancellation of events. What’s more, no one knows how long this will continue. As a result, many businesses are considering whether their insurance might provide some relief from the losses they already have incurred, or likely will incur, due to this crisis ...
As COVID-19 cases have continued to spread across the country resulting in government-issued “shelter in place” orders, few industries have felt the impact as swiftly and deeply as the restaurant industry. Indeed, such government orders have required restaurants to shut down all onsite dining, causing a sharp decline in restaurant revenue. According to restaurant ...
As soon as we began to shelter-in-place during the COVID-19 crisis, most of us also started to hold virtual meetings, both professional and personal, as a better, more satisfying way to connect. For this, we turned en masse to a handful of video conferencing platforms. However, while we can all agree that these services help us do our jobs and stay in touch with loved ones, these services raise many novel privacy and security concerns ...
How can UK-based insurance companies providing cross-border insurance services to Hungary prepare for 1 January 2021 (i.e ...
The digital signature in Bolivia was created by the General Law on Telecommunications, Information and Communication Technologies No. 164, published on August 8, 2011, granting full legal and evidentiary validity to the legal act or business carried out using this technological tool. Supreme Decree No ...
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on skilled nursing and assisted living facilities. While the following CMS recommendations and guidelines identify nursing homes as the target recipients, they are applicable to all facilities that receive Medicare and Medicaid funds, and are therefore subject to CMS's oversight ...
The Superintendence of Industry and Commerce (SIC) issued an administrative order, through Resolution 19012 of 2020, to providers of telecommunications networks and services providers (TNSP) to safeguard the rights of its users. We highlight the following measures: For mobile phone and internet operators: inform users of postpaid and prepaid services of their rights during the state of emergency and the rules that apply to the suspension of service for non-payment on time ...
The Philippine Government has issued a slew of resolutions and circulars as part of its response to the COVID 19 pandemic and unsurprisingly, a number of legal and practical issues have beset businesses and persons under the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine (ECQ)1. Like the rest of the world, the country is bracing itself for a new normal – in the way enterprises are run, services are rendered, everyday tasks are undertaken ...
This is a briefing on the following issuances as of April 19, 2020 in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic: A. Extension of Periods for the Filing and Submission of Various Documents and Payment of TaxesB. Mandatory Disclosure of Personal Information of COVID-19 Patients C. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Issuances D. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP, the Central Bank of the Philippines) Issuances E. Insurance Commission (IC) Issuances F ...
