Beazley offers Virtual Care in response to telehealth risks
Specialist insurer Beazley has launched Virtual Care, a package of cover providing comprehensive protection against the risks associated with providing technology-enabled healthcare and lifestyle management services in the UK.
A variety of new technologies underpin the digital health market, from telehealth, which enables remote diagnosis and monitoring by professionals, and m-health, which permits self-monitoring of chronic conditions via apps and wearables, to a range of lifestyle and wellness technology that support healthy lifestyle choices. All these modes of care are supported by a range of IT tools, analytics, software, platforms and portals.
Responding to the risks facing operators in this sector, Beazley Virtual Care includes medical malpractice and professional indemnity cover as standard, and can be extended to include:
- Technology products, technology E&O and media liability
- Cyber cover and breach response services
- Product liability
- Public liability
The launch builds on Beazley’s experience as an established provider of specialist healthcare liability products globally, and particularly on the development of its U.S. virtual care offering over the past two years.
Commenting on the launch of the cover, healthcare specialist underwriter Chris Gamber said: “The UK market for digital health is expected to be worth around £23bn ($28.3bn) by 2025. New digital technologies are developing at speed, but the advance of these approaches comes with risks. These include risks that derive from shortcomings in the data and health advice provided, as well as error or malfunction in the technologies themselves, plus data privacy and security concerns.
“Building on our experience of the U.S. healthcare sector, we see a variety of common claims scenarios, in which, for example, patients’ medical records are not properly checked or documented resulting in inappropriate prescribing or diagnosis, apps fail to detect serious changes in a patient’s condition, or lifestyle and wellness apps offer inappropriate advice. These scenarios, combined with cyber and data privacy threats, can make this a challenging sector both for practitioners and underwriters.”
Limits on covers are £10 million.
