Nationally Medical Professional Liability (medical malpractice) premiums have been flat, declining, or had substantial coverage endorsements added over the past decade.   What could bring this to an end and again cause premiums for physicians and hospitals to rise?  The conventional wisdom is one if not two critical indicators would have to change.  Critical indicator #1 is frequency or the number of medical malpractice suits filed.  Critical indicator #2 is Severity or size of losses. The 2011 year brought some interesting developments.  According to Hiscox (super losses in US healthcare on the rise), the frequency of catastrophic claims has increased.  For … Continue reading

Kelly Reed is one of VAST’s Professional Solutions advisors.  He is an expecting father and former college football player at Northern Michigan University.  Kelly primarily works with physicians, community based hospitals and integrated health systems throughout the Midwest. He spends much of his time assessing risks in professional organizations and sees similarities to how he and his offensive line assessed risks before each snap in a college football game.  Watch the video above to see how they are similar.

What is cyber liability?  This is a question that is posed to me nearly every day.   The simple answer to the first part of the question, cyber liability is not really “cyber liability.”  While that statement may not sound like a sane person talking, it is completely accurate.  The risk commonly referred to as cyber liability in my eyes is better described as “a healthcare provider’s responsibility to protect personally identifiable information or personal health information.” The advice that I provide to my clients is to stop thinking of this risk as a cyber-crime, but think of the risk as … Continue reading

All Medical Professional Liability policies areNOTcreated equal.  The value you receive is often related to the dollars you spend.  While we understand in today’s healthcare climate is challenging at best, price should not be the only factor when considering what policy is right for you.  A Cheap Medical Malpractice policy may be what you are looking for, but upon further review is not always what a practice needs. Following are four things you should know about your medical malpractice carrier: Claims Management – Nothing is more important that the reputation of a practice. Questions to ask to better understand who … Continue reading

Most Medical Professional Liability policies are written as “Claims Made coverage” today.  There are other options in the marketplace including Occurrence coverage and Modified Claims Made coverage.  Claims Made policies can offer benefits including reduced costs early in a physician’s career, flexibility as your career progresses, but Tail Coverage should always be top of mind.   The following items will help you navigate the benefits and concerns of a Claims Made policy. Substantial Savings – Claims Made Medical Malpractice policies typically “step up” the premium from year 1 – Year 5 often called a mature rate.  Malpractice claims have a longer … Continue reading

As an advisor to physicians throughout the state of Michigan, I often receive similar questions when physicians purchase or renew theirMedical Malpractice policy.  As a physician, we realize you have to make many decisions every day based on the facts you receive.  The five following questions will give you an overview of the information you need to make the decision regarding your Medical Professional Liability coverage in Michigan. What type of policy is right for me and my practice as a physician in Michigan? Occurrence Coverage, Claims Made Coverage, Modified Claims Made Coverage What limit of liability should I choose? Do defense costs (attorney … Continue reading