insurance for physicians assistants

assessing their needs

Westwood will work with you to ensure your physicians assistant clients have adequate insurance coverage for every threat they could face.

Physician Assistants (PAs) play a critical role in healthcare delivery but face a range of challenges that commercial insurance agents should be aware of in order to offer appropriate coverage solutions. Here are some key challenges:

Scope of Practice: PAs work under the supervision of physicians and their scope of practice can vary widely depending on the jurisdiction and the agreement with the supervising physician. Misunderstandings or scope-of-practice violations can lead to legal complications.
Professional Liability: Like other healthcare providers, PAs are susceptible to malpractice lawsuits. Even when operating under the guidance of a physician, they can be held liable for medical errors or omissions.
Employment Issues: PAs often face unique employment conditions, such as contract-based employment, part-time roles, or working in multiple settings, each with their own associated liabilities and risks.
Regulatory Compliance: PAs must adhere to state-specific licensing requirements and national certification standards, along with healthcare laws like HIPAA, all of which carry their own risks and penalties for non-compliance.
Income and Job Security: PAs may not have as much job security or income protection as physicians, making them more vulnerable to financial instability, particularly if they face a lawsuit or job loss.
Telehealth and Remote Services: The rise of telehealth has opened up new avenues for healthcare delivery but also new liabilities, especially regarding patient data privacy and state licensure requirements for remote care.
Skill and Knowledge Updates: As medical practices and technologies evolve, PAs need to continually update their skills, raising issues related to training, competency, and the associated risks of implementing new procedures or technologies.
Work-life Balance and Burnout: Like other healthcare providers, PAs are at risk of burnout due to long hours and emotional stress, which can compromise patient care and increase the risk of errors.
Interprofessional Relations: Effective communication and collaboration with other healthcare providers are crucial for patient care but can also be a source of professional disputes or misunderstandings.

Understanding these challenges helps commercial insurance agents tailor their products to better serve the needs of PAs. Agents should also consider offering group policies that can be tailored to the specific needs of PAs working in various settings, such as hospitals, private practices, or academic institutions.

what specific insurance do they need?

Physician Assistants (PAs) would generally require a range of insurance products to cover the various risks and challenges they face in their practice. Here’s a rundown of the specific types of insurance they might need:

Professional Liability Insurance (Malpractice Insurance): This is crucial for PAs, given that they perform medical procedures and offer medical advice that could potentially result in malpractice claims.
General Liability Insurance: This offers broader coverage for legal issues that might arise from accidents or injuries occurring in the workspace that don’t necessarily involve medical procedures.
Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI): Given that PAs may employ or supervise other staff, this insurance protects against lawsuits arising from employment-related issues such as discrimination, wrongful termination, or harassment.
Cyber Liability Insurance: This is particularly important for PAs who are involved in telehealth services or who store patient information electronically, protecting against data breaches and cyberattacks.
Workers’ Compensation Insurance: This is generally mandatory for any business with employees and would cover medical expenses and lost wages for PAs or their staff if they are injured on the job.
Disability Insurance: Since PAs rely heavily on their ability to perform specialized tasks, disability insurance can provide a safety net in case they are unable to work due to illness or injury.
Health Insurance: Although not a business insurance per se, many PAs may also need to consider health insurance options either for themselves or their employees.

By understanding the unique challenges PAs face, commercial insurance agents can offer customized insurance solutions that provide comprehensive coverage against both common and specialized risks in their profession.

advice for commercial agents approaching physicians assistants

When approaching Physician Assistants (PAs) for insurance needs, commercial agents should emphasize their understanding of the unique challenges that PAs face in the healthcare industry. PAs are not just medical practitioners but also often business operators and employees, making their insurance needs multi-faceted. Begin with a comprehensive risk assessment to identify specific liabilities associated with their practice, employment setup, and any telehealth or remote services they might be offering. Highlight how tailored insurance solutions can protect them from malpractice claims, data breaches, and other specific challenges they may encounter in their diverse roles. Your goal is to become a trusted advisor who not only provides insurance but also adds value through risk management insights.

Continual engagement is crucial. The healthcare landscape is rapidly changing, impacting regulations, scope of practice, and technologies used in patient care. Regular check-ins and policy reviews can help you ensure that the PAs’ coverage remains up-to-date with their evolving needs. This is not only good for client retention but also allows you to proactively offer additional coverages or adjustments before a liability issue arises. Equip yourself with thorough knowledge of any regulatory changes, technological advancements, or emerging risks that could impact PAs, so you can offer timely advice and adjustments to their insurance portfolio. This proactive approach will solidify your role as a trusted consultant, rather than just a sales agent, and could lead to long-term, mutually beneficial relationships.

Contact Michael Richards now

Michael specializes in insurance for this particular group. You can call him on the number below or fill out the form and he will get your message directly:

Call 855 351 7487

sourcing the best insurance for physicians assistants is essential for commercial agents

General Liability Insurance

General Liability insurance cover medical expenses and attorney fees which result from bodily injuries and property damage that your company or organization could be legally responsible for.

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Professional Liability Insurance

Professional liability insurance, also known as errors and omissions insurance (E&O) and medical malpractice insurance, protects your business against claims of negligence, malpractice, errors, and omissions which may have occurred during the fulfillment of a professional service.

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Telemedicine Malpractice Insurance

telemedicine malpractice insurance—also known as digital health insurance or eHealth insurance—has become increasingly vital for healthcare providers. to protect them against claims of negligence, malpractice, errors, and omissions which may be the result of the limitations of webcam quality or the inability of a patient to properly photograph a condition. It can also cover cyber liability, such as remote controlled medical devices being hacked.

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Directors and Officers Liability (D&O) insurance

D&O insurance (Directors and officers liability insurance), shields the personal assets of company directors and officers, and where necessary, their spouses, from claims which could arise as a result of the decisions they made and actions they took within the scope of their regular duties.

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Cyber liability insurance

Cyber liability insurance covers the financial costs associated with a breach of your cyber security, such as a ransomware attack. It also covers first party costs including event management, data restoration, financial costs to third parties, network interruption, and cyber extortion.

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HNO Insurance

HNOA, (hired non-owned auto insurance) is designed for organizations who regularly hire vehicles or require employees to use their own vehicles in the course of their work. In the case of an accident where your employee was liable, it could cover physical damage to that other person’s vehicle, medical expenses, the cost of hiring an attorney to defend your business.

Workers’ Comp. Insurance

Workers’ compensation insurance covers your employees for workplace injuries or illness. It provides them with medical and wage benefits.

This coverage is mandated by each state, with the wage and medical benefits varying from state to state. Workers compensation also protects business owners from civil suits by workers who become injured on the job.

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Employment Practices Liability

Employment practices liability insurance (EPL insurance or EPLI), covers employers (PDF) against claims made by employees for:

Discrimination (based on sex, race, age or disability, for example)
Wrongful termination
Harassment
Failure to promote and other employment-related issues

Sexual Abuse & Molestation (SAM)

Sexual Abuse and Molestation Insurance provides coverage for organizations against claims arising from alleged sexual misconduct or molestation by an employee or other representative of the organization.

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Environmental Liability insurance

Environmental Liability insurance is liability insurance specifically designed to protect environmental liabilities. This is a specialized form of general, commercial liability insurance that provides financial protection against litigation and clean-up costs resulting from claims of injury or damage caused by pollution, contamination or hazardous waste disposals.

Commercial Property Insurance

Commercial property insurance is a fundamental component of risk management for healthcare and senior living providers. It is designed to protect the organization’s physical assets, such as buildings, medical equipment, furniture, and supplies, from financial losses due to damage or theft.

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Crime Insurance

Crime Insurance covers the insured party a reimbursement if their property is damaged due to a crime. Crime Insurance usually has a huge range of options and comes in different forms. It can be either a rider that can be attached to the existing insurance policy, or it is available as a completely separate product.

Commercial Auto Insurance

Commercial auto insurance is a crucial aspect of risk management for healthcare and senior living providers. It offers vital financial protection against vehicle-related incidents and is often required by law.

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Fully/Partially Funded insurance

Partially Funded insurance gives facilities the opportunity to pay a set premium for, and then in turn is partially covered for specific risks.

Fully Funded Insurance allows facilities to pay premiums to have coverage against all risks. In return, if they are unfortunate enough to incur any of the covered loss or injury, they are reimbursed their insurance policy amount.