While lawsuits on medical malpractice increase, the awards on civil cases soar higher. As a result, the high awards devastate finances in healthcare as medical experts ignore the importance of obtaining liability coverages. Claims in professional liabilities may include negligence, inaccurate advice, violation of contracts, or misrepresentation. In this regard, insurance policies are important to professionals in protecting against loss of finance, businesses, or other assets when faced with a liability ( Born, Karl & Viscusi, 2017) . By spreading the risk from one individual to a group of people, the frequency or severity of a loss is minimized and risk is managed. However, liabilities are divided into risk classes depending on the similarities exhibited ( Pozgar, 2014) . Risks classes might be in form of loss of property, personal injury, or liability in the case of professionals. Therefore, professional liability is not just a legal compliance but an aversion of a catastrophic loss.
Analysis
Even though certain health institutions have malpractice insurance that covers against lawsuits in protecting the organization, individual health professionals are partly liable for damages awarded to patients. Therefore, they are required to obtain private medical liability covers to protect their interests. While liability coverage protects medical experts from financial losses, they give them legal representation, investigative claims, as well as peace to carry out their duties without the apprehension of worries in the event of a lawsuit ( Pozgar, 2014). Despite some physicians being aware of the critical importance of liabilities, others do not understand that apart from paying damages, reputations can be tarnished and practices harmed. Malpractice insurance made on claims takes effect once an event is reported and is applicable for an extended period ( Born et al., 2017) . Despite the volatility dynamics of the insurance market in professional liability, policy prices have been evaluated to be affordable to medical experts.
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At the same time, a physician would be responsible for paying deductibles whether or not it is a defense or indemnity clause. Therefore, physicians should be keen on their responsibility of defense costs within the professional liability policy depending on whether it is outside or inside the declaration ( Born et al., 2017) . In some instances, the costs may exceed the primary limits to be paid by out-of-pocket expenditures by the physician. On the other hand, reporting should be done within a reasonable amount of time ( Born et al., 2017) . Extended Reporting Period could be limited or unlimited depending on the length of time the policy will be effected , the age of the professional, retirement from practice as well as death or impairment of the physician.
Description of the Medical Professional Liability
Given the increasing demands of medical professionals, health care experts have an essential duty to deliver care services according to the established standards. For this reason, violation of practice standards would be considered as negligence or malpractice. After all, medical errors have been one of the top reasons of death in the United States. The omission of actions during practice that deviates from set standards and eventually causes harm to care, recipients, is a legal liability ( Pozgar, 2014) . However, elements of medical malpractice must be present to create grounds for a lawsuit. Liability requires that there must be evidence of duty, breach of duty, cause, and harm that should be filed within state limitations. Therefore, professionals are not required to practice without insurance and prepare for the worse since employers could seek for loss recovery in the event of negligence from the employee.
Coverage
Medical professional liabilities cover against wrongful practices that result in bodily injuries, mental harm costs, or damage to property. In this case, even though coverage varies in institutions, it caters for malpractice or omissions in care. Malpractice involves a licensed healthcare practitioner not meeting the established standards in his profession. Negligence, on the other hand, is not doing what should be done ( Pozgar, 2014) . Despite their close distinction, malpractice would be considered serious since it goes beyond being prudent to violating the disciplines of medicine.
Conclusion
While physicians are aware of the significance of obtaining high-quality medical liability coverages, many still do not understand how effective they are in protecting them against risks. Since malpractice and negligence contribute to significant harm and even death of patients, good physicians yield and accept mistakes when they occur. In this case, staying ahead of the worrying statistics by avoiding negligence and malpractice is a constant effort of surveillance. The article and chapters analyzed provided simple and detailed information on professional liabilities among medical experts. Information was also relevant and easy to understand. However, they should have explained viable criteria that physicians could use in choosing a policy. The paper’s focus on the importance of obtaining an insurance policy, categories of risk policies, and liability of medical experts give an in-depth understanding of how to protect against uneventful incidences. The significant impact of the understanding will further enable me to be meticulous and accurate during practice while respecting professional regulations. After all, adhering to practice rules prevents unnecessary damages and costs to both patients, healthcare providers, and institutions. Even though losses can be replaced, death or damage to the health of individuals cannot be reinstated.
References
Born, P. H., Karl, J. B., & Viscusi, W. K. (2017). The net effects of medical malpractice tort reform on health insurance losses: The Texas experience. Health economics review , 7 (1), 42.
Pozgar, G. D. (2014). Legal and ethical essentials of healthcare administration . Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
