The physician assistant/associate (PA) profession has been around for more than 50 years, and as healthcare has evolved, the PA role has expanded, playing a vital role in patient safety and care access.

But with growing responsibility comes growing liability risks:

• When a PA is making more autonomous decisions around patients’ care, that increases their potential liability.
• PAs are now treating more complex patients—including increasingly in surgical subspecialties—which inherently increases risk.

Most practitioners will be the target of a lawsuit at least once in their career, with or without the occurrence of a medical error. Unfortunately, the professional liability coverage offered by many employers is not keeping pace with PA risks—especially as they shift their focus to more collaborative team-based care.

Why Do You Need Your Own Professional Liability Coverage?

Despite being exposed to many of the same risks as physicians, PAs are often not as well insured. The coverage your employer provides may miss your risks, or coverage limits may be too low, because the dollar amounts of medical malpractice jury awards keep climbing.

Administrative risks are of special concern. Employer-provided coverage protects the organization, but it may leave gaps relative to a PA’s risk concerning actions brought by Medicare/Medicaid, professional licensing boards, credentialing reviews and actions, Professional Review Organizations, federal agencies regarding EMTALA, and the DEA. A single board complaint can take several years and tens of thousands of dollars to resolve, and a board complaint places a PA’s license and reputation at risk.

Another key consideration for PAs is extended reporting period coverage, also known as tail coverage. Malpractice claims take on average 18 to 24 months from incident to lawsuit—if your employer insurance does not include tail coverage and you leave a practice before a claim is filed, you won’t be covered for that claim.

Considering the financial risks, PAs should scrutinize their employment contracts, looking for individual vs. shared limits of liability. For instance, the contract’s stated monetary limits might apply to the PA, to the PA and a supervising physician, to the PA and the employer, etc. PAs should be aware that shared limits increase risks.

Supplemental, or excess, malpractice insurance is a policy you can use to boost and complement employer coverage. When you have your own supplemental coverage and you face a claim, your two insurance carriers coordinate a defense and settlement strategy. Having your own coverage gives you peace of mind, protecting you from licensing board actions, providing your own legal counsel and adequate funds for your defense, and guaranteeing coverage that is focused on your reputation and livelihood, not on the interests of your employer.

Features of the Industry’s Best PA Coverage

TDC Group, through medical professional liability insurance carrier The Doctors Company and its affiliate The Doctors Company Risk Retention Group (RRG), has been protecting PAs since 1976. With $7.3 billion in assets, our financial strength gives us the power to protect our members today and tomorrow. Our member surplus is over $2.8 billion, making us the strongest of any national member-owned liability carrier, and we are rated A by AM Best Company and Fitch Ratings.

More than 90 percent of our over 90,000 members nationwide report incredibly high levels of satisfaction with our efforts to prevent claims and defend their careers.

Unlike insurers that are investor-owned companies, The Doctors Company remains fiercely independent and dedicated to the interests of our members. We are dedicated to those who provide care—unlike carriers that are directed by their shareholders’ interests.

Our coverage features:

• Coverage limits that match your risk level and the way you practice—a wide range of limits is available.
• Occurrence and claims-made policies. For claims-made policies, free tail coverage is included at full retirement from healthcare practice or in the event of permanent disability or death.
• Industry-leading defense. Your defense starts with a promise to never settle a claim without your consent, where permitted by law. If you are sued, seasoned advocates will support you throughout the litigation process and teach you the skills necessary to be a strong player in your own defense.
• Telehealth coverage included in your policy, as long as you have established the physician-patient relationship in person.
• MediGuard® regulatory risk coverage, part of your malpractice insurance policy, covers you for regulatory and license actions up to $25,000.
• Access to a wealth of patient safety resources, including free accredited education courses and self-assessment tools that help clinicians implement effective protocols, resulting in significantly fewer allegations of malpractice. And the industry’s largest claims database gives us an unparalleled understanding of lawsuits against PAs.
• Expert help to navigate your practice environment: Our exclusive guide provides strategies to help you enhance safety and mitigate risk.
• The Tribute® Plan, which rewards healthcare professionals for a career spent practicing good medicine and for loyalty to The Doctors Company with an award at retirement.† We’ve paid more than $175 million in Tribute awards, and the highest award paid to date is $264,808. Eligible members also participate in our generous multiyear dividend program, which has returned more than $485 million in dividends.†
• New-to-practice discount for clinicians who have graduated, switched specialties, or transitioned from government work or teaching in the past two years.
• National and state advocacy on your behalf. We lead the industry with a dedicated, award-winning Government Relations team, and we have the only medical liability advocacy program covering all 50 states and the federal level. We defend reforms that are in place, prevent legislation from being enacted that would undermine the defense of clinicians, and take opportunities to enact new measures that would limit liability exposure for our policyholders and clinicians across the country.

Additional coverage options are available:

• General liability insurance: Add-on coverage that protects a business against liability to others resulting from bodily injury, property damage, or personal injury. General liability insurance does not cover liability resulting from professional services, employment practices, or workers’ compensation injuries.
• Vicarious liability insurance: If you own your own practice and have employees, independent contractors, or others acting on your behalf, you should consider purchasing vicarious liability coverage because you could be held responsible for their acts or omissions. This is an endorsement added to your policy.
• Additional business owner’s coverage: Commercial property (owned and rented), business and cyber liability, workers’ compensation, employment practices liability insurance (EPLI), and life, health, and disability insurance policies are also available for independent practices. Please contact us at (800) 780-9975 for more information.
• Medical director coverage: This insurance covers medical directors for the unique risks they face in their role, giving them protection from issues that arise in their administrative and leadership duties. Standard malpractice coverage typically only covers errors or omissions in direct patient care, and this coverage adds protection for decision-making and policy-setting responsibilities. It also protects medical directors from vicarious liability situations, where they could be held liable for errors made by their team. Medical directors are often required to hold this type of coverage to comply with legal and regulatory standards.

Types of Coverage—Get Exactly the Protection You Need

• Primary: If you currently have employer-provided medical professional liability coverage, but want your own policy to protect your own professional reputation, or if you’re an independent contractor, self-employed practitioner, or practice owner.
• Excess: If you want to rely on your primary policy as your first line of defense against a claim, but you’d like to purchase additional coverage to avoid paying out-of-pocket expenses after your primary policy limits are exhausted.
• Supervising and collaborating physicians: If you practice independently, vicarious liability can be added to your policy and your collaborating physician’s policy.

Getting a Quote Is Fast and Secure

Get a quote for coverage quickly by providing answers to a few basic questions, like your profession and ZIP code. When you’re ready to apply, simply enter your NPI number and your Council for Affordable Quality Healthcare (CAQH) credentials data will prepopulate the application. If you are not enrolled in CAQH, you can enter your application details into the application form manually.

Get a Quote

†Policies underwritten by The Doctors Company Risk Retention Group are not eligible for the Tribute Plan or dividends.