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The Costs of Medical Malpractice Lawsuits
Many healthcare providers dread the day they might receive a notice of misrepresentation from a disgruntled patient’s attorney. It’s essential to have healthcare liability insurance in Palm Beach. However, while affordable malpractice insurance such as medical staffing insurance protects you from liability in the event of a lawsuit , the overall costs of medical malpractice to the U.S. economy are staggering.
When you watch this video from CNN, you’ll hear two experts debating the merits of medical malpractice caps and discussing the pitfalls of defensive medicine. While medical malpractice payouts equal approximately $1.4 billion each year, defensive medicine has been shown to cost the U.S. economy far more in unnecessary medical expenditures. This video serves as a good reminder of the importance of regularly reviewing your healthcare liability insurance policy to ensure adequate coverage.
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Professional Liability Insurance Explained
If you’re entering a new practice, you may be offered professional liability insurance as part of your benefits package. However, it’s well worth your time to scrutinize exactly what that policy covers. In the majority of cases, healthcare liability insurance offered as an employment benefit is claims-made coverage, which only protects you in the event that the same insurance company covered you at the time of the alleged incident and at the time the lawsuit was filed. If you are interested in more comprehensive healthcare liability insurance in Palm Beach, you may wish to take out an occurrence-made insurance policy.
Hear more about the different types of affordable malpractice insurance by watching this video. This certified financial planner explains the benefits of obtaining claims-made and occurrence-made insurance policies, and discusses the situations in which “tail” insurance can be helpful.
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Understanding Locum Tenens Insurance
Often, physicians are responsible for purchasing their own healthcare liability insurance, which is one reason why so many have considered applying for locum tenens positions. With a locum tenens position, the placement company is almost always responsible for providing locum tenens insurance in Palm Beach. In some cases, the healthcare facility that is engaging the locum tenens provides the coverage. If you’re considering applying to a locum tenens company, it’s imperative to read the fine print before you sign any agreement. Not only will you need to make sure that you understand the terms of your engagement, your cancellation clause, and other provisions, but you must also make sure that the placement agency provides exceptional locum tenens insurance .
Understanding Claims-Made Coverage
Locum tenens placement companies often offer claims-made hospital malpractice insurance. These policies provide coverage for physicians in the event that an incident both occurred and was reported within the active period. This means that if the policy extends to February 1, 2015 and an incident was not reported until February 2, 2015, coverage is not provided. Generally, claims-made coverage is somewhat riskier for locum tenens physicians, given the short-term duration of the engagement and given that the placement agency, not the physician, is in control of the policy renewal.Evaluating Occurrence-Made Coverage
Many locum tenens physicians prefer to apply to placement agencies that offer occurrence-made coverage, which provides more comprehensive protection. With this type of locum tenens insurance, the physician is covered for all alleged incidents that occurred within the active period of the policy, regardless of when the claim is filed. This means that even if the healthcare liability insurance coverage expires on June 1, 2015, and an incident that occurred months earlier is not reported until June 1, 2016, the policy still provides coverage.Purchasing “Tail” Insurance
Even when a locum tenens placement agency provides claims-made coverage, physicians can obtain additional protection if the contract includes a provision for the purchase of “tail” insurance. Purchasing “tail” insurance with a coverage period of at least two years is preferable, given that the typical medical malpractice statute of limitations is two years. -
A Look at Our Locum Tenens Insurance Coverage
For many physicians, locum tenens positions offer the ability to travel to new locations, transition to the next stage in their careers, and choose their own assignments. And for existing practices, locum tenens employees provide an ideal stop-gap solution to temporary staffing shortages. CLS Healthcare Liability Specialists is the leading provider of locum tenens insurance in Palm Beach. We also provide affordable malpractice insurance from our offices in Georgia and Texas.
When you choose our company for your medical staffing insurance needs, you’ll have access to highly competitive premiums—a must in today’s evolving healthcare industry. We offer non-auditable flat premium policies, with defense cost outside the limits available. Our top-rated carrier has been approved not only in all 50 states, but in 200 countries. If it’s time to upgrade your locum tenens insurance, you can rely on CLS Healthcare Liability Specialists to provide premium coverage and a simplified quoting process. Plus, when you work with our experts, you won’t have to purchase “tail” insurance from your current provider.