One of the most common approaches to providing professional liability insurance that we see is for each individual practitioner to carry their own policy. Nurse practitioners, estheticians, massage therapists, nutritionists, registered nurses, and medical doctors, each carrying their own annually-renewable and individually-priced medical malpractice policy.
This strategy works, and saves money, until the owner becomes concerned about the likelihood of a claim attaching the business and the owners. Another challenge that is faced by many spa owners is monitoring renewals for all of these individual policies. There is also the issue of properly ensuring the medical directors.
The organizational spa policy is the answer. It is fine to also allow the individual practitioners to carry their own policies, but to properly insure the business, the owners, and all professionals acting on behalf of, employed by or contracted with the business, a Medical Spa Professional Liability policy provides the answer. In fact, it is redundant for individual practitioners to carry their own policies when the responsibility should fall to the entity.
Vicarious liability in clinical and aesthetic medical service Is a paramount concern for risk management.
The first Botox, Restalyn and other filler injections started years ago as a menu item offered by some dermatology and plastic surgery offices. Soon after experiencing phenomenal results and response from clients, these physicians, nurses and professional estheticians began to expand their client base. This is when the insurance industry started to draw clear bright lines distinguishing between liability claims against aesthetic services versus clinical surgical services.
The vicarious liability that rises to the medical doctor, medical director and owners for the actions and services of the employed technicians and allied medical personnel was a problem for the underwriters. The answer to this problem was to create separate policies that were specifically priced and developed for the aesthetic industry so that the clinical loss experience would remain separate and insulated.
Estheticians, registered nurses, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, chiropractors, dentists, doctors and many other allied and medical professionals have invested time, energy and creative ideas to developing longstanding devoted clientele. The question that many of them face is what is the most affordable and smartest way to provide the necessary Medical Professional Liability Insurance.
The Doctors Insurance Agency Medispa and Wellness liability programs are written to provide a per claim $1,000,000 limit with a $3,000,000 aggregate. These policies are efficient, competitive and carefully underwritten. There are insurance carriers with demonstrated commitment to the aesthetic professional liability industry.
Similar to policies for Labs, Clinical Research Organizations and Telemedicine Organizations, a medical spa professional liability policy should insure owners, current and former employees, and importantly provide medical director coverage, allowing them to supervise, administer, and provide direct patient care if necessary.
These policies should cover all mid-level and medical estheticians, medical doctors and other professionals for the services they provide on behalf of the organization.