Blogs By K Ryan

Normally, a physician’s standard claims-made insurance policy protects them from medical malpractice lawsuits. But what happens if someone brings forward a suit after the physician’s claims-made policy expires? One way that doctors and other medical professionals protect themselves from these lawsuits is with malpractice tail coverage.

So, what exactly is malpractice tail coverage, what does it do, and whom does it cover? This article explains what you should understand about this type of insurance. As you read, you will understand how to protect yourself whenever you switch jobs or change insurers.

What Are Standard Claims-Made Insurance Policies?

There are two common ways for physicians to financially protect themselves from lawsuits. The first way is to use an occurrence insurance policy. Occurrence policies specifically protect medical professionals from medical malpractice lawsuits that occur over the policy duration. If the physician changes jobs and purchases a new policy, they are still covered by their previous policy, even if the incident occurred several years before.

However, most physicians usually opt for a standard, claims-made insurance policy. With this type of medical malpractice insurance coverage, the protection stops whenever the policy ends. Thus, if coverage ends in December of 2020 and a lawsuit is brought in January 2021, the policy no longer protects the professional. Even if the incident occurred in November of 2020, when the physician’s claims-made policy was in effect, they still would not be protected from financial liability, because the policy lapsed. 

This could be a costly event for a medical professional, who would suddenly be on the hook for potentially hundreds of thousands in damages. In this instance, tail coverage would protect the physician.

What is Malpractice Tail Coverage?

Although doctors can purchase occurrence insurance policies, most people opt for claims-made insurance policies. These policies are less expensive but have a limited life. One way that a physician protects themselves from claims after a policy ends is with tail coverage. Malpractice tail coverage will protect them from suits that are filed after an insurance policy is canceled or expired. Because of the period in which an individual can file a claim within the medical statute of limitations, a standard claims-made insurance policy may no longer be valid.

There are three key facts to note about tail coverage:

First, tail coverage protects both the physician and the patient. A patient is less likely to recover damages from a physician without insurance coverage. Likewise, physicians without tail coverage after a lapsed standard-claims insurance policy will be financially liable for any damages from a medical malpractice lawsuit.

Second, tail coverage cannot replace standard-claims policies. If there’s a claim made against a physician that took place during the time they only had tail coverage, then this doctor will not be protected from this lawsuit.

Finally, the tail coverage may only insure a physician for a portion of their claims-made insurance policy.

Who Needs to Purchase Malpractice Tail Coverage?

Although doctors with occurrence policies do not need to purchase tail coverage, those with claims-made policies should. However, tail coverage policies are usually expensive. In fact, it can cost up to three times more than a claims-made policy under certain circumstances. Yet, there are ways that doctors can save extra money on insurance, including:

• Purchasing a limited-term tail policy. With this type of policy, the insurance company may cover less of a doctor’s liability. Likewise, limited-term policies may also expire sooner or fail to cover the whole term of an expired claims-made policy.
• Opting for an extended reporting period endorsement (ERP). This is a form of tail policy that extends the insurance coverage period of a canceled or expired policy. With an ERP policy, doctors will have financial protection from claims made soon after their policy ends.
• Having their new doctor’s group pay for nose coverage. Nose coverage is usually added to the physician’s new claims-made policy. It protects physicians from acts that occur before the insurance policy went into effect.

Should You Go Without Tail Coverage?

If you are a physician that has a lapse in your policy, one of the best ways to protect yourself is with malpractice tail coverage. Although this type of insurance is expensive, it will protect you from financial liability for incidents of medical malpractice that took place during your previous policy. 

If you are a physician without coverage that is facing a lawsuit from a previous policy and do not have tail coverage, then we can help. Contact the West Palm Beach medical malpractice attorneys at Lytal, Reiter, Smith, Ivey & Fronrath at (561) 655-1990 to discuss your case and determine how we can help.

According to the National Council on Aging, ten percent of those over 60 years of age will experience elder abuse in their lifetime. Moreover, it is exceedingly difficult for senior citizens to escape. This is true whether a senior lives with family or in a long-term care facility. So, do you know how to spot elder abuse? Here’s how to report elder abuse if you believe that you or someone else are the victim of an abusive caregiver.

What is elder abuse?

When someone causes harm or is negligent toward a vulnerable adult, they are committing elder abuse. Each state in the U.S. has different elder abuse laws, but it most often takes these common forms:

• Emotional abuse occurs when someone acts in a way that affects a vulnerable senior’s emotional state or causes distress. This can take both verbal and nonverbal forms.
• Physical abuse happens when someone causes physical harm to a senior or makes threats to do so. Deprivation of basic needs can be included in this category.
• Sexual abuse is when a person makes sexual contact with a senior without their consent.
• Neglect occurs when a caregiver fails to maintain a standard of care that any other responsible person would provide.
• Self-Neglect arises when a senior citizen can no longer provide themselves with a level of care. This is especially the case if the senior’s inabilities are a threat to their own safety.

In most cases, elder abuse is committed by family, caregivers, and other members of the community intentionally. However, elder abuse can also be a result of negligent acts or simply by knowing that abuse is taking place but failing to report it.

Why should you report elder abuse?

Anyone, including yourself, can become the victim of elder abuse. As adults grow older, many suffer from diseases like dementia or other cognitive issues. Additionally, elderly people are more likely to be socially isolated or in poor physical health. These effects of aging make seniors especially vulnerable to those they trust. 

Therefore, it is up to us as family and friends to take care of those who are the most vulnerable members of our society. You can do this by identifying and reporting cases of elder abuse to the appropriate authorities.

How do you identify elder abuse?

Knowing how to report elder abuse begins with identifying the abuse. Physical abuse can be identified by injuries such as broken bones, burns, or bruises. Emotional abuse may cause dramatic changes in mood, arguments with caregivers, or withdrawal.

Neglect is often the most difficult to hide. It can take the form of poor hygiene or result in medical needs going unattended for extended periods of time. Tense relationships between seniors and their caregivers can also be a sign of emotional or verbal abuse. These are just a few warning signs to look for and often the most indicative that abuse is occurring.

Important Steps to Take

If you do not know the senior that is experiencing abuse, then document and report the incident with the Florida Department of Elder Affairs. However, if you do know the senior being abused, then you can take different actions to prevent further abuse. 

Regardless of whether you know the affected senior, if a vulnerable adult is facing a life-threatening situation, you should contact 911. This should always be the first step of the reporting process.

Reporting Elder Abuse of Someone You Know

If an elderly person that you know is not currently in a serious situation, here are the steps you can take to report elder abuse:

1. Document the incident. This can include taking photos of living conditions. It may also include taking photos of injuries and labeling the dates that each injury occurred. Also, be sure to document changes in behavior by the elderly person. If you witnessed abuse take place, be sure to document the date, time, and abuser’s personal information.
2. Speak to the appropriate authorities. If a family member is taking care of a senior experiencing abuse, speak to other family and elder care professionals about the incident. If they are in a long-term living facility, speak to supervisors and caregivers about the incident. Take notes of who you speak to and follow up with them to ensure that action is taken.
3. Move the senior to somewhere safe. If these actions fail to change an abuser’s behavior, then you should remove this senior from the negative environment.

Report Elder Abuse in Florida – Don’t Wait Until It’s Too Late

Do you suspect a vulnerable adult is the victim of elder abuse? Contact an experienced West Palm Beach elder abuse attorney at Lytal, Reiter, Smith, Ivey & Fronrath.

Please call us today at (561) 655-1990 to receive a consultation regarding your loved one’s situation.