Coronavirus (COVID-19); Industry News

​The New York State Labor Department today a proposed a regulation​ on workplace safety committees. Some private employers in New York were required to permit employees to form these committees as of last November 1. The proposal is not binding on employers yet, but it previews the final rules.The New York State HERO Act​, enacted and amended last spring, requires private employers with 10 or more employees to permit them to form workplace safety committees. The Labor Department is required to issue relevant regulations. The proposal published today is step one of that process.The proposed rules include:No obligation for employers to notify employees of the…

​All private employers in New York State must activate the airborne infectious disease exposure prevention plans they adopted over the last two months. The action is required under the New York State HERO Act​, which became law last spring. All insurance agencies should activate their plans immediately.The HERO Act required all private employers in the state to adopt prevention plans that equaled or exceeded the standards in model prevention plans provided by the state Department of Labor. The law required employers to adopt plans by August 5. The plans must be designed to prevent exposure to airborne infectious diseases by employees and the public. They…

​The new emergency regulation issued by the New York State Department of Financial Services on Sunday limits the number of times that a policyholder can benefit from the moratorium on policy terminations and changes and the relaxed premium payment rules. The rule makes it clear that policyholders suffering financial hardship because of the COVID-19 pandemic may benefit from these provisions only once. The regulation, labeled Regulation 216, replaced a version of the same regulation that was issued on March 30 for three months. Like its predecessor, it imposes a 60-day moratorium on insurers' ability to cancel, non-renew or conditionally renew policies issued to individuals and…