Editor’s note: Today’s blogpost is the first of a three-part series on how a successful medical malpractice insurance agent views the future of the market and the broker’s role within it. The article it originates from was initially published in the April 2012 issue of Medical Liability Monitor, the industry’s premier source for consistent, reliable […]

Missouri is one of three states where its Supreme Court is considering the constitutionality of non-economic damage caps in medical malpractice cases. The other two states are Florida and Indiana. On March 27, the Missouri Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case where a child was stricken with cerebral palsy and brain damage during […]

Defensive medicine has been a topic of national discussion since the healthcare reform debates dominated the news cycle in 2009 and much of 2010. Defensive medicine is commonly referred to as the practice of ordering diagnostic tests primarily as a safeguard against medical malpractice lawsuits. These unnecessary tests are ordered primarily to both deter medical […]

California insurance commissioner Dave Jones recently mandated lower rates for medical professional liability insurance offered by NORCAL Mutual Insurance, the Dentists Insurance Company and the MIEC Physicians & Surgeons program. Last year, Jones asked California’s top six medical malpractice insurance companies to submit rate filings to the Department of Insurance and justify their current rates. […]

According to a new report generated by Hiscox, a specialist healthcare insurer, the number of $50-million-plus medical malpractice “super losses” is on the rise. The report claims that—in the last two years alone—juries have awarded more than $1 billion in verdicts that exceed $50 million. These super losses are rising despite improvements in risk management […]

The Supreme Court of Florida recently heard oral arguments in the case Evette McCall v. United States of America. At the heart of the case is whether Florida’s cap on non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases is constitutional or not. Florida passed a $500,000 cap on non-economic damages in 2003. The amount would increase to […]

As providers of physician liability coverage, we wish the phrase, “There’s nothing new under the sun,” held true regarding medical liability. But, it does not. A recent article on MedScape.com reminds us of this. The article, entitled, “Chilling New Ways Patients Are Suing Doctors,” calls attention to three new ways in which patients are successfully […]

The Connecticut Senate Judiciary Committee recently approved legislation that would significantly hamper the effectiveness of the state’s 2005 medical malpractice tort reforms. In 2005, the Connecticut legislature passed a law that requires a person alleging medical malpractice to get a written opinion from a physician practicing in a similar specialty as the accused that supports […]

If I purchase a claims-made policy do I have to buy a malpractice insurance tail? The agents and brokers at MyMedicalMalpracticeInsurance.com are asked this question multiple times per day. The answer always is: it depends. The truth is that a physician should always know his or her options no matter what type of policy he […]