Volunteer Fireman's Insurance Service (VFIS) of West Virginia
Working Hand in Hand with WV Volunteer Fire Departments
Bill Bailey Insurance Works with Volunteer Fire Departments
The Volunteer Fireman’s Insurance Service (VFIS) of West Virginia offers a progressive portfolio of insurance protection and services designed especially for emergency service organizations. West Virginia’s volunteer fire departments have a partner in Bill Bailey Insurance Agency. Since 1980, Bill Bailey Insurance Agency/VFIS of West Virginia has worked hand in hand with West Virginia’s Volunteer Fire Departments in protecting families and homes in all 55 counties of our beautiful state.
Call (304) 375-4900, toll-free 1 (800) 926-VFIS (8347) or contact Bill Bailey Insurance Agency today with any questions or to get a quote.
Commitment to Emergency Medical Service (EMS) in West Virginia
Our commitment to properly limiting the risks involved in Emergency Medical Service (EMS) response in West Virginia has led to long-term partnerships with many of our state’s best providers. From the largest to the smallest entity, we are a valued friend and resource.
As the leader in emergency service insurance for more than three decades, we have made it a point to provide our customers with quality education, risk control, and management programs. From training to troubleshooting, VFIS of West Virginia helps emergency service organizations become better prepared for every call.
Can Your Emergency Service Benefit from VFIS of West Virginia?
Bill Bailey Insurance/VFIS of West Virginia and Fire Departments and Ambulance Services
Many clients ask us about the benefits of coverage through VFIS of West Virginia. It is among the broadest available and includes such features as:
- Auto (owned, non-owned, or commandeered)
- General Liability ($1 mil per Occurrence/up to $10 mil Aggregate)
- “Good Samaritan” liability
- Professional health care liability
- Management Liability (all volunteers & employees) – Cyber Liability and Privacy Crisis
- Property (Guaranteed Replacement Cost)
- Portable Equipment (Blanket Guaranteed Replacement Cost)
- Excess Liability – with underlying continuity
VFIS of West Virginia Coverage for Fire and Ambulance Also Includes
- Real and Personal Property on a total blanket limit with Flood and Earthquake
- Defense Expense outside the policy limits
- Replacement Cost for buildings, real property, personal effects and more
- Deductible Waiver for covered losses under Multiple VFIS of West Virginia Coverages
- Separate coverage and limits for General Liability and Management Liability
Additional Features of VFIS of West Virginia Coverage for Fire and Ambulance Services
- Underwritten through an A.M. Best “A+” (Superior) rated insurance company
- Nationally filed and available on an Admitted basis
- Highly Experienced Claims Management
- Access to innovative safety educational tools
- Access to training programs and consulting services
VFIS of West Virginia for 911 Centers and Rescue Centers in West Virginia
Coverage from VFIS of West Virginia also extends to 911 centers and rescue centers across the state. If you are part of emergency management for health and safety, speak with Bill Bailey Insurance Agency to review your coverage today!
VFIS of West Virginia for 911 Centers and Rescue Centers Covers
Property
- Guaranteed Replacement Cost Coverage for Buildings
- Building Ordinance
- Full Replacement for Personal Effects
- Flood and Earthquake Coverage Portable Equipment
- Guaranteed Replacement Cost Coverage
- Replacement Cost for Members’ Personal Effects
Professional Health Care Liability
- Good Samaritan Acts Coverage
- False Arrest and Slander Coverage
Excess Liability
- Excess Liability over Automobile
- Liability, General Liability, and Management Liability Up to $10,000,000
Accident and Sickness Group Term/Long-Term Disability Education and Training Services Consulting
- Growth Management/Impact Studies
- Mergers and Consolidations
- Risk Assessment
Automobile
- Liability Coverage
- Physical Damage Protection — Agreed Value
- Excess Coverage for Volunteers/Employees while acting on your behalf
General Liability
- Protects Volunteers/Employees when acting on your behalf
- Protects Dispatching Personnel including failure or refusal to dispatch and dispatching errors
Management Liability
- Employment-Related Practices Coverage
- Protects Volunteers/Employees when acting on your behalf
- Coverage for Wrongful Acts Allegations including Limited Non-Monetary Damages
- Excess Outside Directorship Coverage
- Cyber Liability and Privacy Crisis Management Expense Coverage
For more information on coverage for other municipal offices, schools, and public utilities, please see our Public Service District page.
Communication is Key in Risk Control for Opioid Cases
The extent of our nation’s opioid epidemic is reaching crisis levels. The United States Health and Human Services reports a rise in the rate of overdose deaths to four times the number reported in 1999, with an average of 78 Americans dying every day from an opioid-related overdose.
As opioid dispatches rise in occurrence in EMS systems across the nation, many agency practices respond with airway management and Naloxone administration in response to the crisis. Naloxone (also referred to by a trademark name NARCAN), stops or reverses the respiratory depressing effects of an opioid overdose. The FDA approved it for expanded use. Many regions have leveraged “user-friendly” routes of Naloxone, placing doses in the hands of more responders, including law enforcement, fire department personnel and, in some areas, even bystanders.
As firefighters, police officers, and bystanders become Naloxone-equipped, this introduces additional tiers to the traditional “transfer of care”. The actions and accounts of these individuals are pertinent to the care provided by EMS and healthcare providers down the road. Consequently, EMS providers must uncover these actions and document them in the EMS PCR.
Proper documentation is an effective way to minimize the risk associated with transfer of care, even if “care” is being transferred from a non-EMS responder or bystander.
Documentation should detail the entire patient care timeline, ensuring the times of interventions, assessments, and transfers, be documented precisely.
From a risk control and patient safety standpoint, an emphasis was placed on a combination of verbal and written communication in the transfer of care process, citing both methods independently have their fallacies.
Systems can facilitate verbal communication through the adoption of a standard “hand off” report such as I-PASS. Integrating a transfer of care report form can serve as a facilitator for verbal communication and contribute to written documentation, including a signature by the receiving provider. VFIS of West Virginia provides the Advanced Airway Verification Form for completion by the receiving provider not only supports the transfer of care, but also verifies the advanced airway placement was viable. This verification should be obtained before transferring the patient from the EMS stretcher to the hospital bed.
