Why It Is An Absolute Must For Physician Assistants To Buy Malpractice Insurance
There are many malpractice suits filed against doctors and physician assistants every year. Sadly enough, the physician assistant does not have to actually make an error to be held liable. Just about anything can occur in the medical field. Unfortunately, it only takes one frivolous lawsuit to not only ruin his medical career, but also wipe out a physician assistant’s bank account. This is unless he is appropriately covered by medical professional liability insurance.
One of the quickest rising medical professions in America is that of the professional physician assistant. In addition, the responsibilities of the average physician assistant are increasing because numerous states are trying to find ways to reduce the healthcare expenses. Given this scenario, it is absolutely certain that medical malpractice suits against physician assistants will continue to rise. The AAPA calculates that the amount of physician assistants working in America will be 141,000 around the time of 2020. There is no doubt that all practicing physician assistants are at an increased risk of being named in malpractice suits.
Although a physician assistant might be on the company’s insurance policy, he or she can still be held liable for medical malpractice.
Even though a physician assistant is a dependent healthcare practitioner, he is always at risk of individual liability. In the eyes of the law, each medial worker can be held liable for what he does.
There are numerous physician assistants who assume that they are fully insured if they are listed on the insurance policy of their employer. This is completely false. PAs are not fully covered under such employer insurance programs. They can still have a lawsuit filed against them if they did something wrong. They could possibly be held responsible for giving the plaintiff the full amount or a part of what the plaintiff wants.
Every hospital that employs healthcare professionals buys malpractice insurance that covers the hospital and its medical staff. However, this coverage is not sufficient. Physician assistants have to get personal malpractice insurance on their own or via a group. They are also responsible for choosing the right liability limits.
There are two types of malpractice insurance – “occurrence” and “claims-made.” If the malpractice episode occurs before the insurance policy expires, then it is called occurrence insurance. With occurrence insurance, a claim that is reported late will still be covered if the incident in question took place before the insurance policy expires. However, this form of insurance has become rare because of the uncertainties surrounding malpractice suits. The claims made kind of insurance policy is the more common type of insurance in this day and time.
In the “claims-made” type of insurance, all malpractice incidents that happen in the policy period must be reported to the insurance company when the policy is active. If the incident is reported after the insurance expires, then the claim will not be approved. Physician assistants who want coverage for claims that are reported after policy termination must buy another policy, which is called Extended Reporting Endorsement. Physician assistants who change their insurance companies (to lower their premiums or for any other reason), can buy “prior acts” insurance to cover incidents that have occurred but are not reported.
Physician assistants have to pick the right malpractice policy that according to their job description, where they practice and the level of risk that is associated with their particular job. A physician assistant’s job responsibilities can be put into three different groups that are designated as Class A, B or C.
Class A physician assistants have to help find solutions for patient problems.
Class B physician assistants are those who assist in general surgeries, obstetrics (prenatal or postnatal care), trauma/emergency procedures (up to 10 hours per week), and anesthesiology.
Class C physician assistants are those who assist in orthopedic/OB/GYN/cardiovascular/neuro/thoracic/plastic surgeries. In addition, they assist with obstetric procedures in the delivery room, cardiac catheterization as well as helping out more than 10 hours a week in the emergency room.
Physician assistants should purchase the right about of insurance coverage if they help with risky procedures such as cardiovascular surgery. Physician assistants who assist in routine and safer procedures like diagnostic management can choose a lower limit. If the number of malpractice suits is on the rise in the state, then the physician assistant must choose a higher limit.
By buying medical malpractice insurance, a physician assistant can help to safeguard both his healthcare career and this financial future. To eliminate even the slightest risk, every PA must buy adequate malpractice insurance even though he is covered under his employer’s policy.
There is no doubt that malpractice insurance for physician assistants is very important to protect their career. You can find more information here: Physician Assistant Salary
February 2, 2012 | Posted by Nelson Copland
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