Medical Malpractice Insurance Rates

A medical malpractice refers to a mistake or an unintentional error by a medical practitioner. In some cases the error can be also intentional. Fact is medical malpractice insurance is needed by most of the medical practitioners due to the fact that the doctors, surgeons and therapists often get sued by their patients. The basic intention of the court case is that the patient is not satisfied with the treatment or the doctor has committed some mistake. However a single court case can easily result into a huge liability as the courts often order a compensation (which is quite hefty) to be paid to the patient. The medical malpractice insurance policy is principally, a policy that is generated to protect the medical practitioner from sudden liability and the patient from an intentional malpractice. Problem is rates of insurance against medical malpractice are sky-high.

Medical Malpractice Insurance Policy

The insurance rates depend on several factors, such as the insured person, whether it is a group insurance or not, etc. Here are few features that affect the rates of the policy. It must be noted that medical malpractice lawsuits are sometimes also against the establishments such as hospitals and clinics. Here the practitioners and establishments have a combined backing of 2 insurance companies. So here goes...

• In all medical malpractice cases, the first point that is considered is the level of the treatment. In case of treatment given by a surgeon, the compensation awarded is high but in cases where a doctor has treated a case where no operation has taken place, then the compensation is a bit low. The premium of the policy differs accordingly.
• The second aspect is the experience of the practitioners. The more senior the doctor, the lesser is the premium. Moreover, in cases where the doctor is in his pre-retirement years, then the insurance rates tend to be a bit low.
• Another important aspect is varying rates by specialty. Heart surgeons and neurosurgeons have very, very high premiums. However, it does not mean that the rest of the practitioners have a very low insurance premium, the premium is just a bit low comparatively.
• Thirdly, fluctuating rates by state tend to be different due to the different laws, differing demographic figures and also medical malpractice Statute of Limitations. In several states, a medical malpractice insurance is also a compliance and based upon the practitioner's specialty, the insurance policy cost and coverage differ.

Moving on to the medical malpractice insurance costs and figures.

Medical Malpractice Insurance Rates

According to the medical malpractice statistics by United States General Accounting Office, the insurance rates in some parts of the States have shot up to an increasing grasp of 75%, with some states showing an increase by 2%. To get a better idea, let us take the example if Minnesota, where the average premium for a year hovered around, $10,000, for internal medicine while OB/GYN insurance premiums went up to $17,000 per year. Pennsylvania showed a projection that was upwards, high, but not extremely costly. The malpractice insurance rates were in the bracket of $28,000 to $50,000. In states such as Florida, the costs went as high as $90,000 for one year.

It is often very difficult to get good and cheap insurance rates against medical malpractice. Hence clubbing the policy with the establishment is a better option.