RIMS eyes public-private partnership for pandemic risk

The Risk and Insurance Management Society Inc. on Tuesday said efforts to create a public-private partnership for pandemic risk and to protect cyber security and data privacy are among its top legislative priorities for the year.

Introduced on Nov. 2, 2021, the proposed Pandemic Risk Insurance Act would create a federally backed program providing compensation for business interruption losses due to a pandemic or outbreak of communicable disease.

“In doing so, it would help create a much softer market for buyers of pandemic risk insurance,” RIMS said in a statement.

RIMS will also focus on helping define a federal framework for protecting privacy and data systems and exploring the patchwork of state laws that govern data privacy.

The New York-based organization’s external affairs committee met last month to review existing and looming legislation and define its top legislative priorities for 2022.