Include the Center’s Liability in Your Group Medical Malpractice Insurance Policy or …Insure that La

January 16, 2015

Liability Insurance for a Standalone center

Again, that question was asked today: in this instance, this was an Interventional Radiologist, who together with an academic institution, some business people (general contractor, a few cardiologists and some Radiologists, they are building and opening soon a center (office based lab) or “OBL” to perform cardio cath’ stents, and other procedures to help heart/cardio patients in this Center setting.

The work that is being done there will be referred by radiology groups, hospitals, internal medicine practices and cardiologists. The hope is that the center will perform 5,000 procedures per year, most of which will be handled by local radiologists, assisting the other specialists in town. (although there is nothing about the medical malpractice/facility liability policy that demands, or dictates the geographical origin of the patient, it is better to have them local in order to build loyal physicians and patients.

Premium for a Cardio Procedure Center Lab

The Concern that this radiologist had was (not uncommon), was, how do you price this policy, and what is the cost of tail. The pricing is handled like an imaging center,

the premium is developed by counting the number of procedures, the type of procedures, the location (different venues can charge higher premium than others (according to historical payouts, the jurisdiction, etc.) and the annual projected revenue.

For a center that is doing cardio procedures (relatively noninvasive), the annual premium can be expected to be within the range of the minimum premiums.

Center’s liability insurance includes the employed or contracted Medical Assistants and Nurses and Techs

There will likely be a nurse practitioner, or RN or Medical Assistant on hand to help process and handle the patients; and, importantly, if the radiologists are using this facility as a pre and post op/clinical office that becomes the attending for the patients who receive these procedures, then the policy will start to look more like an individual medical malpractice insurance policy, which added to a facility policy can begin to add up.\The cost of a medical malpractice insurance policy naturally contemplates the pre and post procedure care, which can be higher than just a center policy.

Example, if a Gastroenterologist just does Colonoscopies (sort of a Colonoscopy for hire doc), then the premium , if included in the Endoscopy center will be less than if rated as a solo practitioner, the same, logic applies here for Radiologists providing these cardio procedures.

By grouping the professional and general liability insurance together. the policy will respond on behalf of the center, the physician for performing the procedures and for the Medical Director portion of the risk.