Entity Medical Malpractice Insurance
Medical Malpractice Insurance for Healthcare Businesses
Healthcare businesses can face significant liability arising from the healthcare services provided through their organisation.
Even where doctors, nurses and other registered healthcare practitioners maintain their own individual professional indemnity or medical indemnity insurance, the business entity itself can still be exposed to a claim.
Entity Medical Malpractice Insurance is designed to protect healthcare organisations against claims arising from the provision of professional healthcare services, including allegations involving employees, systems, procedures, administration, supervision and the vicarious liability of healthcare practitioners.
Mercantile Insurance Brokers specialises in arranging insurance for healthcare organisations throughout Australia. We work with healthcare businesses ranging from individual practices and specialist clinics through to larger multi-location and national healthcare organisations.
For specialist advice or an Entity Medical Malpractice Insurance quotation, contact Mercantile Insurance Brokers on 1300 310 467.
Why Does the Healthcare Entity Need Its Own Medical Malpractice Insurance?
A common misconception is that a medical practice does not require its own malpractice insurance because its doctors or other practitioners maintain individual medical indemnity insurance.
Individual practitioner insurance and entity malpractice insurance protect different insured parties.
A claim following an adverse patient outcome may name:
- the treating practitioner;
- the healthcare business;
- employees involved in the patient’s care;
- administrative or nursing staff;
- management;
- contractors; or
- several of these parties together.
The healthcare entity can also have responsibilities that are completely separate from the clinical decisions of an individual practitioner.
These may include the operation of clinical systems, patient administration, staffing, supervision, policies and procedures, record keeping, communication of medical information and clinical governance.
Entity Medical Malpractice Insurance is therefore an important part of the insurance program for organisations involved in delivering healthcare services.
What Can Entity Medical Malpractice Insurance Cover?
Cover varies between insurers and policy wordings, however an Entity Medical Malpractice policy may provide protection for civil liability arising from acts, errors or omissions in the provision of professional healthcare services.
Depending on the policy selected, cover may include:
- Medical malpractice and clinical negligence claims
- Vicarious liability arising from healthcare practitioners
- Acts or omissions of nurses, employees and other healthcare staff
- Administrative errors affecting patient care
- Failure of systems, procedures or practice protocols
- Patient recall and follow-up failures
- Failure to communicate test results or medical information
- Patient scheduling and triage errors
- Privacy and confidentiality claims
- Complaints and investigation costs
- Representation at certain regulatory or disciplinary investigations
- Telehealth and remote healthcare services
- Defence costs associated with covered claims
- Public relations or crisis management expenses under some policies
- Errors and omissions exposures associated with the healthcare business
The exact scope of cover, definitions, exclusions, sub-limits and conditions varies substantially between insurers. Mercantile can review the activities of your organisation and negotiate an appropriate policy structure for your particular healthcare services.
Entity Medical Malpractice vs Individual Medical Indemnity
These covers should not be treated as interchangeable.
Individual Medical Indemnity Insurance generally protects an individual healthcare practitioner against liability arising from their professional healthcare services.
Entity Medical Malpractice Insurance protects the company, practice, clinic or other healthcare organisation against liability arising from the operation and delivery of healthcare services through the entity.
In many claims both the practitioner and the healthcare organisation may be named.
For example, a doctor may be alleged to have made an incorrect clinical decision while the medical practice is separately alleged to have failed to maintain adequate systems, appropriately supervise staff or communicate important information to the patient.
Having appropriate individual and entity cover can therefore be an important part of managing the overall professional liability exposure of a healthcare organisation.
Healthcare Organisations We Can Insure
Mercantile can arrange Entity Medical Malpractice Insurance for a broad range of healthcare organisations including:
- Medical centres and GP practices
- Specialist medical practices
- Radiology and diagnostic imaging practices
- Pathology and diagnostic services
- Cardiology practices
- Dental practices
- Day surgeries
- Private hospitals
- Fertility and IVF clinics
- Cosmetic medical clinics
- Allied health practices
- Physiotherapy and exercise physiology practices
- Podiatry practices
- Psychology and counselling practices
- Optometry and audiology practices
- Pharmacy businesses
- Rehabilitation providers
- Drug and alcohol treatment services
- Aboriginal and community healthcare organisations
- Nursing and home-care organisations
- Disability and respite care providers
- Aged care organisations
- Multi-site and national healthcare groups
More complex healthcare organisations can require a tailored insurance program rather than an off-the-shelf policy. This is particularly important where the organisation employs or contracts multiple categories of healthcare professionals or provides services across different locations or jurisdictions.
More Than Just Medical Malpractice
Healthcare businesses generally require more than one insurance policy.
Depending on the size and activities of your organisation, Mercantile can assist with a broader healthcare insurance program incorporating:
- Entity Medical Malpractice
- Professional Indemnity
- Public and Products Liability
- Management Liability
- Cyber and Privacy Liability
- Business Property and Business Interruption
- Workers Compensation
- Corporate Travel
- Motor Insurance
- Crime and Fidelity Insurance
We can review these policies together to identify potential gaps or unnecessary duplication between covers.
Why Use Mercantile Insurance Brokers?
Healthcare is a specialist insurance sector.
The activities undertaken by your organisation, the healthcare professionals you engage, the contractual arrangements with practitioners and the services provided to patients can all materially affect the insurance required.
Mercantile Insurance Brokers has extensive experience arranging insurance for Australian healthcare organisations.
We can assist with:
- Reviewing your existing Entity Medical Malpractice cover
- Identifying potential gaps in insurance
- Reviewing the insured business description
- Comparing policy wordings and insurer options
- Reviewing practitioner and contractor arrangements
- Selecting appropriate limits of indemnity
- Reviewing retroactive cover
- Considering contractual insurance requirements
- Arranging insurance for new healthcare services or acquisitions
- Managing insurer negotiations at renewal
- Providing ongoing insurance advice as your organisation changes
Our role extends beyond obtaining a premium. We aim to understand your healthcare operations so that insurers are provided with an accurate description of the risk and the cover arranged is appropriate for the organisation.
Request an Entity Medical Malpractice Insurance Quote
Whether you operate a single medical practice, specialist clinic, allied health business or a large national healthcare organisation, Mercantile Insurance Brokers can assist with your Entity Medical Malpractice Insurance.
Contact us for a no-obligation review of your existing insurance or a new quotation.
Phone: 1300 310 467
Email: office@mercantileib.com.au
Mercantile Insurance Brokers services healthcare organisations Australia-wide.
Insurance cover is subject to the terms, conditions, exclusions, limits and sub-limits of the relevant policy. The information above is general in nature and should not be relied upon as a substitute for advice based on your individual circumstances.