malpractice insurance

normally the anesthesia group you work for covers the cost of your malpractice. only if you were an independant contractor would you have to pay out of pocket for insurance.

I believe the cost is around 2000 dollars a year, give or take. Depends on where and what type of practice you are in.

You are all in for a big shock. Malpractice insurance for CRNAs is VERY costly and is calculated on a state by state basis and your malpractice history. Also, the only type of insurance available is "claims-made" and the price goes up yearly and you must purchase a tail at the termination of your insurance. I have never had a lawsuit and will pay over $10,000 this year (including the tail from St. Paul insurance who is no longer writing med mal insurance. AANA Insurance Services at the AANA web site has good information, but does not quote premiums.

It pays to be well informed on this topic, because it is a major overhead expenses, whether you are self-employed or employed by a group.

Yoga

Okay now I'm confused. So Yoga, you pay for your insurance out of your own pocket? Does this vary between where you work whether or not the group pays for it? And what is a "tail"? I've been keeping up with the malpractice news in my state (PA) r/t physicians, but they never mention CRNAs in the news so I'm pretty clueless as far as CRNA insurance goes.

Is the insurance provided by groups or hospitals not adequate? Are CRNAs required or advised to carry additional insurance besides that which is supplied by their employer? This is an interesting and important topic that I have heard little about.

Thanks for your replies... it's hard to find much info about this on the web.

I should have been given more information in my answer. I am self-employed and contract out my services and do not work for any group. By the way, this is a common type of practice for CRNAs. I am a self-employed business person in the business of administering anesthesia and bill health insurance companies, Medicare and the patients for my professional services.

I know of no CRNA who has malpractice insurance provided as part of employment benefits who purchases additional insurance, unless they are practicing independently also. Most employment paid malpractice insurace only covers those claims that occur in the employment setting.

For more information, those of you who are anesthesia students, attend a state or national nurse anesthetist meeting and talk to CRNAs and talk with the insurance people who usually exhibit there.

Yoga

I am not a CRNA, just a regular ICU RN but I also carry malpractice over and above what my hospital provides. Someone mentioned in a post something about what the employer/group providing should be sufficient......I had a nursing instrcutor from many moons ago suggest that you should always carry your own insurance because then you have some say in the outcome of any case against you....for example, it might be in the hospital's best interest to settle a claim to avoid bad publicity. The hospital does not need your consent to do this, even if you don't believe the case against you, but you would then be left with the black mark of having a claim against you settled. If you have your own insurance, you have someone representing YOUR best interests, and who is obviously NOT going to want to just settle a claim to avoid publicity.

There is the fact that having your own policy does make you a "deeper pocket". But I don't believe just having more insurance makes you more liable to be sued.

The hospital doesn't remove you from their policy just because you carry your own, but my hospital did insist on knowing if you have your own policy in addition to theirs.

KristenRN raises some valid issues regarding professional liability insurance. I have heard these same arguments regarding CRNAs, so I believe they are applicable to nurse anesthesia practice also.

loisane crna

Sorry guys, I don't agree. Can anyone tell me of a case where that actually happened? There are probably a few out there, but I would take my chances. It is simply a matter of economics--if my employer is providing my malpractice coverage and it costs me $10,000 to purchase my own insurance, I am not going to do it. Are you?

YogaCRNA

Yoga,

There are different types of policies available. CRNAs who are covered by their employers can obtain a supplemental policy. Premiums for this type of coverage are much cheaper than for the type of coverage you need as an independent practitioner.

Of course, the environment right now is in great flux. Things could easily change, making this option much less affordable. That is sure what seems to be happening with all professional liability insurance right now.

loisane crna