Zurich North America has issued a new Risk Topic offering guidance for property management and risk managers on the temporary use for public-private sponsored COVID-19 vaccination sites. Zurich’s Risk Topic, Temporary COVID-19 vaccination sites: risk mitigation comes at a critical time as the demand for the dissemination of the COVID-19 vaccinations increases. Local and state government departments of health are asking private property owners to support setting up temporary vaccination sites for the general public, which may change building occupancy and premises risks.
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“Customers have asked us for guidance on identifying and reducing risks that can come with setting up and operating COVID vaccination sites,” said Julie Bolton, Vice President of Casualty Risk Engineering, Zurich North America. “The spread of COVID-19 is unprecedented in our lifetime and navigating the associated risks requires businesses and other organizations take additional care to protect their employees, the public and their property.”
COVID-19 vaccines have already begun to be delivered through doctor’s offices, pharmacies, temporary clinics and locations normally managed by private industry. Large office spaces, sports stadiums, malls and amusement parks are being incorporated as part of a significant public-private engagement for temporary use as vaccination sites.
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Risk engineering solutions help organizations build resilience by helping them identify exposures, reduce potential losses and improve safety. Temporary COVID-19 vaccination sites: risk mitigation states that “The COVID-19 vaccine roll-out is a major undertaking and may create challenges of delivering and administering the vaccines at scale. The logistical hurdles and potential risks associated with using a venue in an alternative manner for immunizations are important to consider and special risk treatments will be required. The success of these efforts relies on coordination and collaboration among local and state public health departments, healthcare organizations, logistics providers, venue operations and community leaders.”
The information provided within the Risk Topic expands the property owners’ ability to reduce risks associated with the site setups.
Zurich’s Risk Topic addresses in detail the unique characteristics for each proposed temporary vaccination site considering the size, location (urban, suburban or rural), geography, duration of use, space availability, road access, parking, accessibility for the disabled, number of expected vaccines to be delivered, and reasonably foreseeable health risks. In addition to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines and those developed by the vaccine manufacturers, there are specific areas to consider when developing a vaccination site mitigation strategy.
- General site design and areas of vaccination
- Drive-in facilities vs. walk-in facilities
- COVID-19 safety guidelines to minimize possible health risks to staff, providers, volunteers, consultants and vaccine recipients
- Property protection guidelines
In addition to the new Risk Topic on vaccination site strategies, Zurich maintains a dedicated Coronavirus Resource Hub to help businesses manage day-to-day operations when navigating the growing risks associated with COVID-19. Created in March 2020, the Hub offers articles, podcasts and additional resources, and continues to bring together key risk management leaders sharing their knowledge to help manage the evolution and impacts of COVID-19 and plan strategies for protecting their businesses, employees and the communities they serve.
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