MALPRACTICE INSURANCE

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Medical professional liability insurance, sometimes known as medical malpractice insurance, is a type of professional liability insurance that protects physicians and other licensed health care professionals (such as dentists and nurses) from liability associated with wrongful practices resulting in:

• Bodily injury.
• Medical expenses.
• Property damage.

It also protects them from the cost of defending lawsuits related to such claims.

Overview of Malpractice Insurance

Medical professional liability insurance policy covers bodily injury or property damage. It also covers liability for personal injury such as mental anguish. The complexity involved in discovering negligence results in a higher percentage of premium dollars going toward defense and cost containment (DCC) expenses. Medical liability insurers spend large sums of money investigating and defending claims where there is an adverse patient outcome not resulting from negligence.

Types of Insurance

There are two basic types of malpractice insurance:

• Claims-made: Many insurers write on a claims-made form basis where a policy in effect at the time a claim is reported responds for the loss, while the policy remains in force and during any applicable extended reporting period.
• Occurrence-made: This policy was more popular in earlier times. It covers a loss that “occurs” during the policy period, regardless of when the claim was made, and even after the policy has been canceled.

Typical Coverage Amounts

There are general per occurrence coverages:

• 1,000,000 to 3,000,000 per occurrence
• 1,000,000 to 6,000,000 per occurrence

Why do I have to add my Supervising Doc to my policy?

You must add your supervising doc as part of your collaborative agreement. Typically insurance companies do not charge to add your collaborating doctor.  This is standard in the industry of professional medical directorship.