It’s six a.m., and the phone is already ringing. As I put down my coffee and pick-up the telephone, I hear a frantic voice on the other end that is too fast to understand. “Sir, sir,” I interjected, “please slow down as I can’t understand you.” The gentleman took a deep breath before saying, “Sorry, […]

A general surgeon in Savannah, Ga., recently called me in need of help with the high cost of tail coverage she was offered by her employer. She was leaving a group practice and moving out of state to take a new job. When she informed the group she was leaving, they told her she would […]

The Utah Supreme Court last month declared a portion of the state’s pre-litigation medical malpractice review panel process under the Utah Health Care Malpractice Act unconstitutional because it violates the separation of powers doctrine. The Utah Legislature passed the Health Care Malpractice Act in 1976 to curb the perceived cost increases in malpractice insurance in […]

As someone who specializes in medical malpractice insurance, every day can be an exciting day as the worlds of medicine, insurance and the law all smash together — not to mention egos and hurt feelings. A great example is when I helped a company get its medical malpractice insurance in New Jersey. I had a […]

The Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) concept in healthcare may be familiar to some individuals and organizations, unfamiliar to others and/or perceived by still others as an overwhelming concept. Essentially, ERM is a strategy to increase the economic and noneconomic value of an organization. ERM was first implemented in the financial services sector. Since then, more […]

The U.S. medical professional liability (MPL) insurance segment continues to produce favorable results, with better-than-average profitability for more than a decade. However, according to a new A.M. Best Special Report, the MPL market remains pressurized, resulting in a longterm trend of declining premiums, rising underwriting ratios and diminishing reserve redundancies. The Best’s Market Segment Report, […]

In March, the Trump Administration unveiled its Fiscal-Year 2020 budget proposal, outlining the President’s tax and spending priorities for the next decade. While the president’s budget proposal is simply a request with no binding authority on Congress, it is best understood as a detailed statement by the administration of its fiscal goals and policy preferences. […]

For primary care physicians, diagnostic errors are the leading type of malpractice claim, accounting for the highest proportion of indemnity paid, according to a just-released Primary Care Red Signal Report from Coverys. The analysis of primary care claims is the second in a planned series of claims-trend reporting intended to identify risks and illuminate safety […]

The MPL Association, the organization representing the medical professional liability (MPL) insurance community, issued a reminder that its annual Conference will take place May 15-17 at the Marriott Portland Waterfront Hotel in Portland, Ore. The Conference is open to both MPL Association members and non-members. The Association also noted that advance registration for the 2019 […]