PIAA IS NOW THE MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY ASSOCIATION
PIAA, the leading national insurance trade association representing domestic and international medical-professional liability (MPL) insurance companies, risk-retention groups, captives, and other entities, changed its name to the Medical Professional Liability Association, or MPL Association. The change reflects its commitment to keep pace with the changes among its members and the evolving medical-professional liability community.
Mary-Lou Misrahy, President and CEO of Physicians Insurance, was recently selected by the Medical Professional Liability Association’s Board of Directors to serve as its chair. Anne E. Bryant, Senior Director of Government Relations and in-house lobbyist for Physicians Insurance, currently chairs the MPL Association’s Government Relations Committee.
See MPL Association press release at tinyurl.com/y8kq8lze
CAPITOL HILL DAY FOCUSES ON MPL/HPL REFORMS AND PATIENT SAFETY
The Medical Professional Liability Association held its annual advocacy “Capitol Hill Day” in Washington, DC, on June 25 and June 26, 2018. The day began with a legislative briefing, followed by individual Congressional meetings. Anne E. Bryant, Senior Director of Government Relations for Physicians Insurance and Chair of the MPL Association’s Government Relations Committee, met with select members of the Washington, Oregon, and Idaho delegations to discuss critical medical-professional liability reforms and continuing the focus on patient safety that benefits patients, physicians, and others devoted to improving the health-care system.
For the first time in nearly a decade, Congress is seriously considering federal MPL/HPL reform, in addition to other legislative matters critical to our industry. The Medical Professional Liability Association continues to build support for these bills through its federal advocacy campaign, an event that provides an opportunity for individual federal lawmakers to hear directly from their constituents. Physicians Insurance was pleased to join others in this effort by participating in this year’s Capitol Hill Day discussions.
Physicians Insurance proudly supports the MPL Association’s effort to promote national legislation to improve patient access to health-care services and provide improved medical care by reducing the excessive burden the liability system places on the health-care delivery system.
Physicians Insurance actively works to:
- Protect the provision that no new standard of care for medical-liability claims is created by the Affordable Care Act.
- Promote comprehensive legislation that improves the liability system and promotes meaningful patient-safety initiatives (improve Protecting Access to Care Act, H.R. 1215, passed House, 06/2017). tinyurl.com/kbk6z6u
- Promote liability protection for health-care professionals and facilities that provide uncompensated services to victims of federally declared disasters (Good Samaritan Health Professionals Act, H.R. 1876). tinyurl.com/yaw2m953
- Promote framework for legislation that addresses telemedicine liability concerns as telemedicine services expand.
ADVOCACY
As the only Northwest-based medical-professional liability carrier with a registered in-house lobbyist, we provide advocacy on challenges to the professional-liability industry that:
- Create new causes of action against health-care professionals
- Adversely alter the standard of care for physicians
- Create strict liability for performing or not performing care
- Impose onerous or unnecessary duties on its insureds
To learn more about our Government Relations Program, contact:
Anne E. Bryant,
Senior Director of Government Relations
anne@phyins.com
206-343-6612
TRIAL RESULTS
The following summary is a Physicians Insurance case that has gone to trial and is public record. In reporting these legal results, it is our goal to inform members about issues that impact health-care professionals. While we share information we think may be informative, we choose not to disclose the names of plaintiffs or defendants when reporting these results.
FAILURE TO DIAGNOSE AND PROVIDE TIMELY TREATMENT OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE
SPECIALTY: Physician’s Assistant and Family Practice
ALLEGATION: An 80-year-old female alleged ongoing Achilles-tendon injury after taking 500 mg of Levaquin for a urinary-tract infection in 2009. Plaintiff alleged, first, that the provider should not have prescribed any antibiotic for the patient’s confirmed urinary tract infection; and second, that the provider failed to inform her of the risks associated with Levaquin and the alternatives to that medication. The patient claimed a myriad of ongoing symptoms and decreased mobility caused by the Levaquin.
PLAINTIFF ATTORNEY: James Dore, Kent, WA
PLAINTIFF EXPERT: Pobert Weber, MD, Cardiology, Culver City, CA, Samuel LeBaron, MD, Family Practice, Palo Alto, CA, Donald Schreiber, MD, Emergency Medicine, Stanford, CA
DEFENSE ATTORNEYS: Scott O’Halloran and Deanna White, Tacoma, WA
DEFENSE EXPERTS: Peter McGough, MD, Family Practice, Seattle, WA, Robert Bersin, MD, Cardiology, Seattle, WA, Jacob Heller, MD, Emergency Medicine, Seattle, WA
RESULT: Defense Verdict; Jury Trial