Source: asiainsurancereview.com

Medical experts have been hard at work to find a cure for COVID-19, with dozens of studies underway in several countries. In some cases, clinical trials have been performed to test possible solutions on patients in China and the US.

Clinical trials are medical research to determine the efficacy and safety of a new drug or a treatment method as well as the existence of side effects. These help doctors find the best way to improve the treatment protocol and control and treat diseases. These are also the fastest and safest way to improve human health. Some of these clinical trials are working to repurpose old antivirals. Some are mobilising tried-and-true technologies, and others are pressing forward with futuristic approaches to human medicine. Some research teams and pharmaceutical companies are also working to develop a vaccine that can protect people from the coronavirus infection. However, vaccine development takes a long time and it could be around a year to 18 months before one is available, provided everything goes on well.

According to press reports, medical teams will also test a range of COVID-19 therapies, including HIV and flu antivirals, blood plasma infusions, and traditional Chinese medicines, under the oversight of World Health Organisation (WHO).

These clinical trials, however, can’t happen without clinical trials insurance in place, which is a specialised liability cover. Clinical trial insurance protects claims for personal injury caused by negligence and defects in related trials, such as the test plan, informed consent, test drug, or combination drug.

Bruce Chen – Willis Towers Watson assistant general manager (corporate risk and broking China) said, when the COVID-19 breakout began, Willis Towers Watson (WTW) contributed its professional strength to put in place the required clinical trial insurance regime to accelerate the use of the drug in clinical use and jointly overcome the outbreak. “Working with the insurers and local authority in China, we have supported eight clinical trial policies for COVID-19 anti-viral drugs to date. These include liability insurance cover on the development of traditional Chinese medicine, in vitro diagnostic (IVD) product and infection testing agent.”

In the initial stages of the outbreak, the WTW team proactively contacted the expert medical and pharma groups in China to accurately assess the insurance protection needs of those who have successively conducted clinical trials for multiple anti-viral drugs. These clinical trial projects have a high degree of particularity and urgency. Among them, there are drugs already in the market, as well as drugs that have not been marketed at home and abroad but are widely recognised by experts in China and abroad as likely to be effective for the COVID-19 pneumonia. There is a project for clinical trials in nearly 20 research institutions in China.

“The WTW professional service team put in place a complete comprehensive insurance solution with a coverage limit as high as RMB5m.” Mr. Chen said, “The entire clinical trial insurance framework was put up in very short time so that the clinical trials for the projects could be advanced and also provide comprehensive protection for patients, sponsors, research institutions and researchers involved in the clinical trials.”