U.S. Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, Gil Cisneros, Will Hurd and Tom Suozzi have introduced the Never Again Small Business Protection Act to provide small businesses access to business interruption insurance that will help keep them afloat during national emergencies.
Countless business interruption insurance policyholders across the country who have been paying their premiums for many years have discovered in recent weeks that their policies do not cover government-ordered business shutdowns caused by a national emergency, in this case, the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Never Again Small Business Protection Act would require that business interruption insurance provide coverage for businesses and nonprofits for losses that stem from any federal, state or local government-ordered business shutdown following the declaration of a national emergency. This coverage would support businesses that are impacted for at least 30 days as long as businesses keep their employees employed and maintain their health insurance coverage.
“Small businesses across our country are suffering through no fault of their own. During this crisis, many have been forced to lay off employees or shut down. We must provide assurance to them that in the case of future national emergencies that they will never have to go through such excruciating uncertainty ever again,” Fitzpatrick said. “Our small businesses need our help, and they need it now. They employ over 50 percent of the American workforce and they are the backbone of our economy. I am proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation to make sure that businesses can access a policy they pay into when they need it most.”
