Appropriate Assessment of Risks and Exposure
Q: How will I know if the premiums I pay are fair? A. HU’s board of directors—doctors just like you—will review premium recommendations from independent actuaries. Those recommendations will be based specifically on loss experience. After a review of the data, your elected colleagues will select the rates to be approved by the Office of Insurance Regulation. Every attempt is made to establish the appropriate rate for each specialty. Should loss experience prove to be better than expected, excess premiums can be returned to owner-policyholders (with the approval of the Board and the Office of Insurance Regulation). Q: What is a tail policy or tail coverage? A. A tail insurance policy is additional insurance coverage that covers any claims made after a claims-made policy expires or is cancelled. Since most healthcare providers carry claims made insurance policies, tail insurance provides important protection against claims that could be made months or even years after care was provided to a patient. Q: Does HU provide free tail coverage? A. HU provides free tail coverage to retiring owner-policyholders who have been a policyholder for at least five consecutive years. Tail coverage is also free for owner-policyholders with an active policy who become disabled or deceased. Q: What are prior acts or “nose” coverage? A: Prior acts, or nose insurance coverage, protects a doctor from a prior act (treatment rendered to a patient), but not reported as a claim until after the doctor’s previous policy expires or was terminated. Q: How do I get an application processed? A: There are serverals way to get an application processed with HU Q: What types of policies does HU offer? A: HU follows the national standard for medical professional liability insurance and offers claims-made policies. Q: What limits of liability are available? A: HU offers annual limits of $1 million with up to $2 million available. Additional limits and specific needs of large medical groups will be considered upon request. Aggregate Limits are available. Q: Does HU insure all medical specialties? A: Yes. HU accepts applications from qualified physicians from any specialty and any part of the state. Appropriate premiums are charged for each specialty. The objective is to apply a downward pressure on rates by insuring good doctors and defending them aggressively, regardless of specialty or location. Q: Does HU insure medical office staff and nurse practitioners? A: Yes; however we do not offer separate limits for ancillary personnel. Q: Do I pay my capital contribution and premium at the same time? A: Insurance coverage does not become effective until both capital and premium are paid. In some situations, a physician will make the capital contribution first to establish ownership in HU. He or she may make the premium payment at a later date when ready for coverage to commence. HU offers a pre-approved financing option. Q: Once I am an HU insured, is there any guarantee that I can not be canceled? A: While it is not prudent for any insurance company to offer a blanket guarantee of future insurability, you may rest assured that under most circumstances a HU insured/owner will not be canceled without undergoing a peer review process, which may include intervention and remediation before any cancellation becomes necessary. Moreover, every attempt is made to identify shifts in claims experience early so that we can work together with our insured's to avoid future claims and eliminate any need to consider a cancellation. We work hard not to cancel a policy. However, when you consider your position as an owner/insured, it becomes obvious that you do not want your company obligated to cover an uninsurable risk. A: From time to time you will see a company aggressively pursuing your premium dollars by implementing a variety of interesting tactics: ‘special’ pricing and excessive discounting, ‘guaranteed’ coverage, guaranteed rates, and other ‘creative’ solutions. These are short sighted tactics employed by less experienced management teams that may be compensated heavily for generating a large volume of premium in the short run. These options may seem attractive at first, however, history has repeatedly demonstrated the folly of these efforts. The basic math is inescapable. Chasing premium dollars by charging too little and accepting the wrong risks does not work over time. When companies like these fail (and there have been dozens in recent years), the ‘insured’ doctors and medical groups are the ones left with tremendous coverage gaps, insurability, and premium challenges. A: Your comments underscore the importance of doctors taking control and having true governance and oversight of your own company. HU is different than commercial carriers motivated by profit. Independent actuaries will bring data directly to the board of practicing HU doctors you elect. This board will be comprised of your peers, ( doctors insured by HU, and who are impacted by rate changes just as you are). No rate changes will be approved without the direct oversight and review of your board. __________________________________________________ Here are a few additional FAQ links that you may find useful. |
