INSURANCE FAQS
The Board of Directors heard your concerns about the increasing cost of professional liability insurance and the challenges in the application process. After an extensive market analysis undertaken by OOHNA’s broker of record, your Board of Directors is pleased to announce the endorsement of the Canadian Nurses Protective Society as protection provider of choice. For more details on how this positively impacts you, please see below:
Why am I not being offered the option to renew my Professional Liability Insurance (PLI) ?
In 2020, as a result of COVID-19, insurance companies excluded communicable diseases from many Professional Liability Insurance (PLI) plans, including OOHNAs. To OOHNA members, this meant that anyone who wanted communicable disease coverage had to pay an additional premium that was equal to the cost of the PLI policy. We were informed by our broker WTW that this practice would continue. We were also made aware that additional plan limits and premium increases were being considered.
With the assistance of our current Broker of Record (WTW), OOHNA performed a detailed market assessment of available PLI plans. We took into consideration the available benefits coverage, costs, competitiveness, and ease of administration. We concluded that OOHNA could no longer directly provide a competitive PLI plan that would meet the needs of our members.
Upon discussion with the Canadian Nurses Protective Society (CNPS), it became clear to OOHNA that the services offered by CNPS would better meet the needs of its members. We are very pleased to endorse the Canadian Nurses Protective Society (CNPS) as OOHNA’s professional liability protection provider of choice. If you have any questions regarding CNPS Core Services or the CNPS scope of assistance in specific circumstances including COVID-19, please contact the CNPS directly at 1-800-267-3390.
What sort of protection does CNPS provide ?
Information about CNPS services is available at www.cnps.ca/services. OOHNA believes that the following will be of particular benefit to members:
- Comprehensive protection, with professional liability protection also made available on an occurrence basis
- Expanded services
- Free (no additional cost) legal support from lawyers who understand all nursing specialties
- Access to regularly updated practise resources (includes independent practise)
- Access to online education that is constantly updated.
- Ease of registering – OOHNA members can request proof of protection immediately after registering.
- Support – you can call CNPS anytime for assistance
- $145 + HST per year for Core Services (professional liability protection) and everything offered is included in your protection – no added costs. You can also apply for their additional Supplementary Protection program (assistance with complaints made to the regulatory body) for an additional fee.
What about protection for any claims based on past incidents?
,OOHNA Members remain covered for past incidences provided that you were an OOHNA member with PLI for the year the incident occurred. As per our past communications it is important to keep your certificate of insurance for proof of coverage.
Will I have any lapse in coverage between the two plans?
The current OOHNA policy held under Watson Towers Willis will remain in effect until December 31, 2021. OOHNA members who register as a CNPS beneficiary on or before December 31, 2021 will be eligible for assistance from the CNPS on or after January 1, 2022 for legal issues and questions relating to services provided on or after January 1, 2022. Therefore, in order to avoid a gap in protection, you will need to register with the CNPS by December 31, 2021. CNPS registration for 2022 will open on October 1, 2021.
Questions and concerns?
Please contact OOHNA’s executive director, Lina Di Carlo (execdirector@oohna.on.ca)