Chad Duke, Vice President/Risk Advisor, and Pim Jager, Vice President/Benefits Consultant, were recently featured on the ESOP Podcast discussing captive insurance and Scott Insurance’s collaboration with the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO) to create two new captive programs exclusively for ESOP companies, OWN Health (health insurance) and OWN Risk (property and casualty). Continue reading
As Affordable Housing organizations face their annual insurance renewals, many have been surprised at the level of premium increases they are experiencing. Today’s challenging and volatile insurance market is having significant impacts across the industry and has led many forward-thinking industry leaders to consider alternative risk financing mechanisms, such as captives. While our Affordable Housing Team has received increasing questions about captives, this isn’t just anecdotal. According to industry trends, interest in captive insurance in the U.S. has risen greatly in the first quarter of 2021. So, if you aren’t already considering whether a captive might be a good fit for your organization, now may be a good time to begin the conversation. Continue reading
The business need – and population health need – of having larger percentages of vaccinated employees in the Senior Living industry is clear. Scott’s Senior Living Practice recently hosted a webinar to provide a comprehensive overview of potential strategies to increase vaccination rates among employees of Senior Living organizations. Featuring speakers with a wide range of expertise, including medical, legal and risk perspectives, the webinar highlighted the need for vaccinated employees due to asymptomatic spread, addressed specific risk factors of the industry’s employee population and provided timely guidance for employers. Continue reading
On December 16, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued its first direct guidance for employers regarding COVID-19 vaccines. The EEOC is responsible for enforcing federal laws against job discrimination and harassment.
As we stated in a previous blog post, employers can make the vaccine mandatory, subject to federally protected exceptions for disability and sincerely-held religious beliefs. The EEOC guidelines provided further explanations for employers regarding these exceptions, including documentation to support the request and how to manage a worker when an accommodation is not possible. Continue reading
Edit 12/4/20: Please note that the CDC update indicates that local public health authorities make the final decisions about how long quarantine should last in the communities they serve, based on local conditions and needs. The CDC recommends that you follow the recommendations of your local public health department if you need to quarantine.
During a recent media briefing, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced an update to quarantine guidelines, offering options for shorter quarantine periods.
The CDC’s updated guidance allows for the following quarantine periods for those who may have been exposed to COVID-19 but are without symptoms:
While offering these shorter alternatives, the CDC still recommends a 14-day quarantine as the safest option. Continue reading