Medical Malpractice Insurance NY

What to know when looking for Medical Malpractice Insurance in NY

The Basics:

When looking at the various options for medical malpractice insurance in NY, it would be of great help if you have an overview of the market. The following tips will help clarify your options for malpractice insurance:

1. Standard NY State Admitted carriers: There are three primary carriers for Medical Malpractice insurance in NY: Medical Liability Mutual Insurance Company (MLMIC), Physicians’ Reciprocal Insurers (PRI) & Medical Malpractice Insurance Pool (MMIP).
2. Type of Coverage: There are two standard types of medical malpractice insurance policies in NY: Claims-Made & Occurrence.
3. Limits of Liability: Most carriers offer $1/3 Million or $1.3/3.9 Million in coverage for medical malpractice insurance in NY.
4. Risk Retention Groups (RRGs): Besides the above NY State admitted carriers, there are an increasing number of carriers known as RRGs that offer medical malpractice insurance in NY. A RRG is a liability insurance company that is owned by its members. Under the Liability Risk Retention Act (LRRA), RRGs must be domiciled in a State. Once licensed by its State of domicile, a RRG can insure members in all states. Because the LRRA is a federal law, it preempts State regulation, making it much easier for RRGs to operate nationally. RRGs are therefore not regulated by NY State for premiums and policy features.
5. Hospital acceptability: All hospitals accept medical malpractice insurance from any of the standard NY carriers such as MLMIC, PRI or MMIP. However, not all hospitals accept RRGs, and when they do, they usually limit acceptance to a few RRGs.
6. NY State Guaranty Fund: The NY State Guaranty Fund will cover claims if any of the State admitted carriers were to go bankrupt, or were unable to meet its obligations. The State admitted carriers are MLMIC, PRI and MMIP. The State Guaranty is not available to physicians who get their medical malpractice insurance in NY from RRGs.

It is extremely important that physicians looking for dependable medical malpractice insurance in NY carefully understand the pros and cons of the various options available to them. Physicians are advised to weigh the benefits of each type of insurance as well as the reputation of the insurance companies against the premium savings offered by all these carriers.