|
|
 |
In 1985, disciplinary
actions were taken against 2,546 Physicians following
Medical Board Reviews. |
|
|
By 1992 the number of
disciplinary actions had grown to 9,064! That's a 356%
INCREASE! |
|
|
Disciplinary hearings
involving Physicians increased by 25% in just a two
year period from 1995 to 1998. |
|
|
In 1999 (the most recent
year reported by the study) 11,330 disciplinary
proceedings were brought against Physicians! |
|
|
Given this information
and the obvious trend it's showing, projections
indicate that when 2000 is reported, the number of
disciplinary hearings involving Physicians will have
increased another 40%! |
That's a total of 15,862
Disciplinary Hearings involving Physicians. An increase in
over 623% since 1985. What's worse, it shows no sign of
slowing!
Understand, these are all
Physicians who are just like you. They didn't think it
could really happen to them. "It always happens to someone
else" is what I hear all the time. These findings make it
ever more important to make sure you are covered by a
highly protective defense coverage.
It doesn't matter whether
you're at fault or not
If your name is reported to
your Medical Board because of a Medical incident, there's
a good chance they will demand that you appear before them
to prove that you're "worthy" to still keep your license.
And it doesn't matter whether
what happened was your fault or not.
If your name is on that
Medical incident report, you're at risk-and you could lose
your license, your career, and your income.
That is why in today's
society it is becoming ever more important to make sure
you possess the right kind of liability coverage. The most
comprehensive form of coverage offered to Physicians today
is the ProNational’s "Occurrence" policy with the
Administrative Defense coverage endorsement. This form of
coverage offers full coverage for any malpractice incident
and expert legal counsel to represent you in front of your
Medical Board to defend your license, your name, and your
self-respect.
Making and honest-to-goodness
mistake on the job is more likely than ever before.
Administrative Defense Coverage offers Physicians the best
coverage available. It will help protect and defend a
physicians’s license any time that a mistake comes under
attack or questioning.
Most insurance
companies provide insurance coverage that is woefully
inadequate.
Many Physicians tend to rely
strictly on their basic policy, yet may not be receiving
adequate coverage. With today's rising costs, many
Physicians are cutting back on their expenses especially
their insurance coverage’s and this could mean disaster.
Many companies only offer
insurance to their Physicians using "claims made"
policies. This means that the policy will cover you only
if a claim is made while you are insured through them.
However, if a claim is made after you have changed
companies, the insurance policy will not cover you.
Beware, you want an occurrence policy if available!
In any case, under most
insurance policies there is no defense coverage available.
If you were to call the insurance carrier and ask them if
they would appoint an expert lawyer to defend you in a
situation brought before the Medical Board, chances are
they will not do so.
This is where in recent
months an innovative insurer, ProNational, one of the
country's largest malpractice insurer, has created a new
concept called "Administrative Defense Coverage."
Administrative Defense
Coverage gives you complete malpractice coverage plus an
expert lawyer to defend you if you ever had to prove to
your Medical Board in a "civil investigation and/or formal
disciplinary action," that you deserve to keep your
license.
Administrative Defense
Coverage offers the best form of liability coverage in
today's market. Also, ProNational, the company who offers
this coverage, makes it available as an endorsement to
their already comprehensive policy and in most cases our
clients still save money compared to their already
existing malpractice insurance policy.
I am not aware of any other
insurance company who currently offers you this tailored
type of " Administrative Defense Coverage."
To verify this, call your
current insurer and ask them if they'll hire an attorney
who's experienced in defending Physicians, to represent
you AND to pay the bill if your Medical Board summons you
to prove that you do deserve to keep your license.
Attorney Fees Alone
Could Virtually Wipe You Out Financially
If your malpractice coverage is issued
without this coverage, you still stand the chance of
losing everything. Paying the attorney fees alone, to
defend yourself in a situation like this could easily cost
a lot. This does not even take into account what a hard
time it will be trying to find an expert lawyer who is
experience in representing Physicians and their licenses.
If they
do not offer such coverage you should go and consult other
insurance companies.
Administrative Defense
Coverage Defense Coverage
The Administrative Defense
Coverage will provide you with legal representation in the
event your State Medical Board questions your ability to
continue as a physician, because of a Medical incident.
Usually the only time they will do this is when you name
is mentioned in a Medical incident, even if what happened
wasn't your fault.
If your name is mentioned in
a lawsuit or a Medical incident, this Administrative
Defense Coverage will pay for legal counsel (up to $25,000
per incident) to defend your case in front of your Medical
Board.
Currently there are very few
Insurers that offer this coverage in their policy, other
than MBS Insurance Services/Physicians Circle of Safety.
And there’s more…..
We’ll pay for all reasonable
attorney's fees for legal services rendered and reasonable
associated expenses (including necessary expert witness
fees and audit cost) incurred in the defense of any claim
or allegation associated with a disciplinary proceeding.
This is critical
After you're reported due to
a Medical incident, there's a good chance your Medical
Board will tell you (not ask you) to appear before them to
prove that you're "worthy" to keep your license.
If your name's filed with a
Medical incident or malpractice suit, you're at risk, and
the legal costs involved in trying to prove to your
Medical Board that you're innocent can add-up to thousands
of dollars without this coverage.
Even worse, you could lose
your license, your career, and your income. That's why you
need malpractice insurance from a company that will
protect you by providing legal counsel.
Conclusion
Being a physician in private
practice can be scary. Even though you're providing a
much-needed and absolutely critical service, you can often
be subject to scrutiny and unfair questioning. Having
Administrative Defense Coverage offers the most complete
and air-tight coverage available everywhere, and that kind
of security and peace of mind is something that can't be
underestimated. With Administrative Defense Coverage,
you'll not only get legal coverage, but also legal counsel
to defend your license, your name, and your self-respect
in front of your Medical Board.
Note:
Michael R.
Bernal-Silva is CEO of MBS Insurance Services, Inc and the
developer of the Physicians Circle of Safety and has been
protecting Physicians with the up-to-date, modern coverage
that most insurers overlook. If you'd like a free brochure
about their revolutionary new
"
Administrative Defense Coverage,'"
simply call Physicians Protection Group at 1-(800)
347-3417 |
