A specialized type of professional liability insurance, medical malpractice insurance provides coverage to physicians and other medical professionals for liability arising from disputed services that result in a patient’s injury or death.

How is malpractice insurance determined?

Medical malpractice insurance premiums are usually based on the physician’s specialty and geographic location, not on claims experience. This means that even if a physician has never been sued, they can end up paying extremely high premiums.

What are the types of medical malpractice insurance?

There are two basic types of malpractice insurance—occurrence or 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.

What are the two types of medical malpractice insurance policies?

It is important to understand the two basic types of malpractice insurance: “claims-made” and “occurrence.” A claims-made policy will only provide coverage if the policy is in effect both when the incident took place and when a lawsuit is filed.

Why is malpractice coverage so extremely expensive today?

Since there are so few medical malpractice payouts each year, insurers tend to invest a considerable portion of premiums into the bond and stock market. When the return on these investments increases, more firms join the market, and the increased competition drives down premiums.

Where can I find medical malpractice insurance coverage?

Medical malpractice coverage is available from both standard insurers like CNA and AIG and specialty insurers like NORCAL Mutual and MedPro. Other sources include risk retention groups like The Doctors Company and Applied Medico-Legal Solutions (AMS), both of which are owned by their member physicians.

When does a malpractice insurance policy pay out?

An occurrence policy will pay a claim based on when a potential malpractice incident occurred, even if you no longer carry the coverage when a suit or complaint is filed. A claims made policy only provides coverage for as long as premiums are paid.

How can I avoid a malpractice coverage gap?

Carriers sometimes offer free tail coverage to retiring physicians who have been continuously covered by the same policy for a certain period of time. Another way to avoid malpractice coverage gaps is to purchase prior acts coverage from your new insurer, which is referred to as “nose” coverage.

Which is better individual or group malpractice insurance?

For a PA’s needs, an individual policy is preferred because: You control the proof of insurance. Therefore, you will not need to rely on an employer to verify coverage when you need to, possibly many years after you have moved on to other employment.