Health Care Providers Insurance FAQ

• At the minimum, health care providers need malpractice or prossional liability insurance (E&O).
• Most health care providers also need general liability insurance.
• If they have employees they will need workers compensation in most states.
• There are also other specialty coverages and endorsements that might be needed based on their operations.

Combining many coverage forms into one policy is not only convenient for both the insured and the insurer but also saves money for each. Many health care providers are eligible for coverage under businessowners programs while others are eligible only for a commercial package policy.

All the coverages needed by a particular physician or facility (particularly the professional) may not be eligible to be combined and written in the policy but it is best to combine as many as possible.

Types Of Health Care Providers Package Policies:

• Businessowners Policy (BOP)
• Commercial Package Policy (CPP)

Property coverages should be given careful consideration because of the many highly valued items associated with health care providers. Some items are better covered by inland marine coverage forms because they are mobile and not location oriented.

Time element coverage needs to be reviewed carefully because the actual exposure may be more of an extra expense nature than business income.

Many health care providers lease the space they occupy and the leasehold interest loss exposure could be a significant coverage gap to fill.

Types Of Property Coverages:

• Building
• Business Personal Property
• Personal Property of Others
• Improvements and Betterments

A physicians and surgeons inland marine coverage form provides very broad coverage and should be considered prior to any other type of inland marine or property coverage. The commercial articles and scheduled property coverage forms should also be considered when business personal property is used at multiple locations and is frequently in transit.

Types Of Inland Marine Coverages:

• Accounts Receivable Coverage
• Bailee Customers Coverage
• Builders Risk Coverage
• Commercial Articles Floaters
• Difference in Conditions (DIC) Coverage
• Electronic Data Processing Equipment Coverage
• Fine Arts Coverage
• Installation Coverage
• Physicians' and Surgeons' Equipment Coverage
• Scheduled Property Coverage
• Signs Coverage
• Transportation Coverage
• Valuable Papers and Records Coverage

Employee theft is a major loss exposure for health care providers. However, the increasing use of computers in the industry also creates the possibility of computer fraud losses that should be thoroughly reviewed. If employees make home health care visits, clients' property coverage may be needed to fill a crime coverage gap.

Types Of Crime Coverages:

• Computer and Funds Transfer Fraud Coverage
• Employee Theft Coverage
• Forgery or Alteration Coverage
• Inside The Premises-Theft of Money and Securities Coverage
• Inside The Premises-Robbery or Safe Burglary of Other Property Coverage
• Money Orders and Counterfeit Money Coverage
• Outside The Premises Coverage

Health care providers are always expanding the methods by which they provide services. Some of these new methods may require posting bonds to guarantee their contracts or performance.

Types Of Surety Coverages:

• Contract-Performance of Service or Supply Bonds
• Court Bonds
• Fiduciary Bonds
• License and Permit Bonds
• Medicare and Medicaid Provider Surety Bonds
• Miscellaneous Surety Bonds

Slips and falls can happen at a health care provider's office just as easily as anywhere else. These losses and others like them are covered under commercial general liability. Professional liability coverage is in addition to, not in place of, commercial general liability coverage.

Types Of Liability Coverages:

• Commercial General Liability (CGL) Coverage
• Employee Benefits Liability Coverage
• Employment-Related Practices Coverage
• Special Events Liability Coverage

Professional and medical malpractice exposures are the most expensive and difficult of all exposures for health care providers. The commercial general liability policy excludes these exposures so separate coverage is needed.

Most professional liability policies are written on a claims-made basis and, as a result, tail coverage and retroactive dates are important coverage issues to be aware of when evaluating the insured's coverage needs and comparing coverages.

Types Of Errors And Omissions (E&O) Coverages:

• Beauticians and Barbers Professional Liability Coverage
• Funeral Directors or Morticians Professional Liability Coverage
• Hospital Professional Liability Coverage
• Miscellaneous Medical Professional Liability Insurance Coverage
• Physicians, Surgeons and Dentists Professional Liability Coverage

The automobile exposures for many health care providers are limited to standard private passenger fleets. On the other hand, hospitals usually have ambulances and other emergency vehicles as a part of their fleets. High-valued private passenger vehicles of some physicians may be a matter of concern for physical damage coverages.

Some hospitals also offer valet parking which increases loss exposures and creates a need for garagekeepers coverage.

Types Of Business Auto Coverages:

• Auto Medical Payments
• Business Auto Coverage
• Collision Coverage
• Comprehensive Coverage
• Garagekeepers Coverage
• Hired & Non-owned Auto Coverage (HNOA)
• Uninsured/Underinsured Motorists Coverage

Coverage for on-the-job injuries to employees is a mandatory coverage in almost every state. Most employers provide the coverage with a workers compensation policy, but some hospital organizations are large enough to self-insure and must provide a self-insurance bond in those cases.

Types Of Workers Comp Coverages:

• Excess Workers Compensation Self-Insurance Bonds
• Stop-Gap or Employers Liability Coverage
• Workers Compensation and Employers Liability Coverage

Most health care providers need more than primary policy liability limits to adequately cover their exposures. Coverage is needed not only for the auto, general and employers liability but also for the professional liability.

It is important to carefully review how an umbrella provides coverage when part of the underlying is on a claims-made basis and part is on an occurrence basis.

Types Of Excess Liability Coverages:

• Excess Liability Coverage
• Retroactive Excess Liability Coverage
• Umbrella Coverage

This category ranges from the single person office to international health care enterprises that employ many professionals and non-professionals alike. Because of the range of businesses involved, a number of the following specialty coverages could apply, depending on the size and nature of the operation involved.

The use of drones to expedite lab tests is in the experimental phase but may become more commonplace in the very near future.

Types Of Specialty Coverages:

• American Expatriate Coverage
• Business Legal Expense Coverage
• Cyber Liability Coverage
• Data Security Breach Coverage
• Directors and Officers Liability Coverage
• Educators Legal Liability Coverage
• Environmental Impairment Liability Coverage
• Export Credit Insurance Coverage
• Fiduciary Liability (Pension, Welfare and Employee Benefit Funds) Coverage
• Identity Theft Insurance Coverage
• International Insurance Coverage
• Medical Personnel Service Agency Liability Coverage
• Risk Retention Group Liability Coverage
• Solar Energy System Coverage
• Terrorism Insurance Coverage
• Tender Offer Defense Expenses Coverage
• Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) (Drones)