October 5, 2018 by matray

September 20, 2018 by matray

September 5, 2018 by matray

The NORCAL Group Foundation, a non-profit organization that provides funding and support for healthcare initiatives focused on patient care, patient safety and physician wellness, is now accepting grant applications for qualifying programs through Oct. 15.

Since its inception in 2017, the Foundation has provided grants and support for 13 worthy organizations and programs focused on the betterment of healthcare in their communities.

More information on eligibility and the application process can be found at norcalgroupfoundation.org. Applications are being accepted between Sept. 1 and Oct. 15 for this cycle.

September 5, 2018 by matray

August 9, 2018 by matray

The United States Surgeon General, Vice Admiral Jerome M. Adams, MD, MPH, will address nearly 100 of the nation's top healthcare leaders today, as the keynote speaker of The Doctors Company's annual Executive Advisory Board meeting. Adams will focus on the need for government/business partnerships to achieve better healthcare, steps the government is taking to address the opioid epidemic and the connection between community health and economic prosperity. He will speak to representatives of industry-leading organizations brought together annually by The Doctors Company to discuss some of the most important issues affecting the practice of medicine today. Adams will also take questions from the audience. Adams will join Richard E. Anderson, MD, FACP, chairman and CEO of The Doctors Company, in a live discussion via video conference. The Doctors Company will post live highlights on Twitter @doctorscompany. "We are pleased that Dr. Adams is participating in our summit of healthcare thought leaders," Anderson said. "His focus on improving healthcare through nontraditional partnerships, leading with science and promoting local community health solutions goes hand in hand with our mission to advance the practice of good medicine." In addition to the Surgeon General, speakers also include:

• Anderson, who will discuss building an enduring national platform for advocacy on behalf of the medical profession. Prior to leading The Doctors Company, he was a clinical professor of medicine at the University of California, San Diego, and was chairman of the Department of Medicine at Scripps Memorial Hospital, where he served as senior oncologist for 18 years.
• Donald H. Crane, president and CEO of America's Physician Groups (APG), who will speak on "Accelerating the Movement to Value." APG is a professional association representing medical groups and independent practice associations practicing coordinated care.
• Daniel Cassavar, MD, MBA, FACC, president and chief medical officer, ProMedica Physicians, whose topic is "How to Train New-Hire Physicians on Practice Culture." In his role, Cassavar provides executive oversight for more than 975 employed physicians and advanced practice providers.

August 8, 2018 by matray

Physicians' Reciprocal Insurers ("PRI"), an admitted medical malpractice insurer in New York State, announced the renewal of a cooperative agreement, first established in 1998, with MagnaCare, a full-service health plan administrator based in New York. Under the agreement, full-time physicians associated with MagnaCare will receive a 7 percent discount off their malpractice premiums.

MagnaCare offers a range of services and access to a proprietary provider network of nearly 130,000 individually contracted physicians, hospitals and healthcare providers.

"MagnaCare is known in New York State for being a trusted resource to patients and medical professionals alike," said Bruce Shulan, CEO of PRIMMA, PRI's wholly owned Attorney-in-Fact. "Their valuable partnership enables MagnaCare member physicians and medical facilities to offer more options to their patients. We have partnered with them for 20 years, and look forward to many more."

In addition to the 7 percent discount, qualified medical professionals could be eligible for other discounts as well, including:

• 10-Year Claims Free Discount: 12 percent
• 5-Year Claims Free Discount: 7.5 percent
• Risk Management Discount: 5 percent
• No Consent Discount: 5 percent
• Annual Pre-Pay Discount: 2 percent

MagnaCare-associated physicians who meet all of the above qualifications could receive discounts up to 31 percent on their premiums.

August 8, 2018 by matray

Editor's note: the following call to action is from Protect Patient's Now, a national advocacy coalition working to enact medical liability reform at the federal level.

August 6, 2018 by matray

A.M. Best has upgraded the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating to “a+” from “a” and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent) of MAG Mutual Insurance Company (Atlanta, Ga.) and Professional Security Insurance Company (Scottsdale, Ariz.), collectively known as MAG Mutual Group. The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable. The ratings reflect the MAG Mutual Group’s balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as strongest, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM). The balance sheet strength is supported by strongest risk-adjusted capitalization, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), historically favorable loss reserve development, modest financial leverage and history of organic surplus growth. In addition, liquidity is adequate and supported by an invested asset base that predominantly consists of high-quality fixed-income securities. A.M. Best considers MAG Mutual Group’s operating performance to be adequate when measured on a pre-dividend combined ratio and operating ratio basis. However, significant challenges exist due to changes in U.S. health care and its effects on this organization’s mix of business and earnings prospects. Despite the challenges, the group produced pre-tax operating profits in each of the past five years, as investment income supported policyholder dividends. The business profile assessment reflects the group’s standing as a regional medical professional liability (MPL) insurance provider operating primarily in the Southeastern United States. Although the group remains heavily concentrated in the MPL sector, management’s diversification efforts in recent years have allowed the group to take advantage of new business opportunities in an otherwise challenging business environment. Nevertheless, the concentration of risk in MPL insurance exposes the group to changes in the U.S. health care system, judicial climate, regulatory environment and state tort reform laws. With regard to its ERM, the group has a framework to identify and manage various different types of risks, a process A.M. Best views as appropriate for its risk profile. Further positive rating action could result if the group’s underwriting results were to improve relative to peers while maintaining a balance sheet strength assessment at the strongest level as the group manages through the current challenging market cycle. Negative rating action could result if material adverse development were to emerge that negatively impacts underwriting profitability and leads to deteriorating operating performance.

August 2, 2018 by matray

July 25, 2018 by matray

Qualified reproductive endocrinologists and infertility specialists (REIs) and their in vitro fertilization (IVF) labs who are members of The Doctors Company are eligible for the REI Protect Program, a highly specialized risk management program founded by Steven L. Katz, MD, a specialist in this field for more than 20 years.

REIs face unique medical malpractice risks because they are focused on the very specialized practice of IVF. To assist in managing these risks, The Doctors Company is partnering with REI Protect to provide the following services to qualified physicians and their labs:

• Direct access to the program for immediate consultation, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week—at no additional cost.
• Ongoing access to specific REI risk management webinars and state-of-the-art topic discussions.
• Comprehensive medical malpractice insurance coverage for the individual physicians, entity, and IVF lab employees, directors, and embryologists. Coverage for advanced practice providers and ancillaries is also available.
• Specialized underwriting and pricing with appropriate specialty classification.

“We created the program to meet the risk management needs of the rapidly developing field of infertility medicine,” Katz said. “IVF labs face unique risks with respect to fertilization, embryo culture, and the storage of cryopreserved sperm, eggs, and embryos. This partnership brings together intimate and expert knowledge of the REI field and IVF lab with The Doctors Company’s 40-plus years of expertise in claims prevention and claims management.”

“This program strongly aligns with our mission to advance the practice of good medicine,” said Laura Kline, senior vice president, business development, The Doctors Company. “By offering these services, we help physicians reduce the risk of laboratory and medical errors. Our eligible members will receive risk management services that originate with incident prevention but extend through incident assessment and problem resolution.”