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Discussion

Malpractice Insurance

I currently do not have malpractice insurance, but have started looking into it. Is it something worth having and if so who's a good provider? I have looked into nso and they seem decent. Any thoughts would help. Thanks.

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    Yes, it absolutely is something worthwhile, even if you don't have to use it. Your hospital may say they cover you, but if you didn't do the tiniest little thing in the P&P manual, well, let's just say the hospital's lawyers are looking out for the hospital's interest, and you'll be the one under the bus. Your own malpractice insurance will provide representation looking out only for you. I personally use NSO, it's only a little over $100 per year.

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    I went home after a really bad night last week and got a quote, I immediately purchased liability insurance. It is worth the security and peace of mind. I also got NSO but the least coverage and it was $46 a year.

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    I love NSO. Inexpensive, good coverage. I would not work without it. It's a personal decision I made, and I do not walk around with a pin or sticker that states "Malpractice insured", nor do I have a bumper sticker. It is protection if I need it, and no one knows I have it expect myself and my husband.

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    I currently do not have malpractice insurance, but have started looking into it. Is it something worth having and if so who's a good provider? I have looked into nso and they seem decent. Any thoughts would help. Thanks.

    I'll cast another vote for NSO. I've had a policy with them since I graduated, about 15 years. I currently pay around $100 per year, but I'm in a high suit specialty.

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    Has anyone ever had to use it?

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    Definitely get malpractice insurance. The two major ones mentioned here a lot are NSO and Marsh (Proliability). I personally have Marsh and I paid a little over $100 for it for the entire year. High-risk specialities have to pay more, such as L&D. Both companies offer a first year discount for new grads.

    If you don't have malpractice insurance, you will be represented by your employer's legal consultant however they are always looking out for the FACILITY'S best interest, not yours. Also, you may be named in a malpractice suit that happened years ago and maybe you're no longer working at that facility anymore. This happened to one of my nursing instructors...she was called into court for something that happened 20 years ago.

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    • Author

    Thanks everyone. It seems like it is something worth having. I think that I'll go through NSO. Thanks again.

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    • Expert

    Additionally, totally apart from the risk of being sued for malpractice (which is admittedly v. slim, statistically, for nurses), your own insurance covers you if you have to appear before the BON to defend your license; it covers you (provides legal representation) if you are called as a witness in a suit against someone else (oh, say, one of the physicians you work with); and covers you outside of work -- any volunteer work you may wish to do, helping a friend or neighbor, responding to an accident. One's employe'rs insurance doesn't cover any of these things.

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    So will insurance cover things that have happened years in the past before you were covered or does it only cover from the time of purchase?

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    So will insurance cover things that have happened years in the past before you were covered or does it only cover from the time of purchase?

    This is one of the things you ask before you buy. Some will cover you for something that happened whenever so long as you are paying premium NOW. Some will cover you for something that happened whenever if you were paying premium THEN. Ask. Never, ever be afraid to ask.

    Some folks will say that they have heard that only people with insurance get sued, under the "deep pockets" theory of litigation, or that the hospital's insurance will cover you for nursing malpractice. Neither is true. Problem is that if your hospital has a judgment against them for something you did, they don't pay it, their insurance carrier pays it. And then, no matter what the hospital promises you, the insurance carrier is entitled by law to recover their losses...from you. My dad wrote insurance on hospitals for years and told me never, never, never go "bare" (without my own insurance) unless I was perfectly comfortable living under a bridge, with no real estate, no money, and no car.

    Yeah, I know, there are laws protecting some assets under bankruptcy. But they could garnish your wages more or less in perpetuity, and that wreaks hell with your credit rating. You wanna deal c that? Not I, since decent malpractice insurance is good for short money.

    Make sure the policy you buy is clear to you: Does it cover you only while it's in force (while you're still paying for it), or does it cover you for things that happened while you were paying for it in the past, even if you aren't working now and don't think you need insurance? Be sure it pays for your own lawyer, too, or supplies one to defend you (never, never rely on the hospital's lawyer to defend you-- conflict of interest there; they do not have your best interests at heart no matter what they say).

    https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/malpractice-insurance-rns-787067.html

    https://allnurses.com/general-nursing...es-583077.html

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    OP: I suggest reading other threads on malpractice insurance - there are several.

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    • Expert

    This is one of the things you ask before you buy. Some will cover you for something that happened whenever so long as you are paying premium NOW. Some will cover you for something that happened whenever if you were paying premium THEN. Ask. Never, ever be afraid to ask

    I interpret RNnewbie's question as being whether insurance will cover you for something that happened before you initially purchased the coverage. I am unaware of any insurance company, anywhere on the planet, that will cover you for an incident that occurred prior to your being covered by them -- just as you can't buy auto insurance that will cover you for an automobile accident that already happened. There is no retroactive coverage that I've ever heard of. If that were the case, no one would buy insurance until they knew they needed it, which would pervert and defeat the entire basic premise of insurance. :)

    You are only covered for incidents occurring once you are covered by the insurance company. This is one of the reasons having your own coverage is important. If you are relying on your employer's insurance (a mistake to begin with, IMO) and something happens, it is entirely up to the employer to decide whether to cover you or not. If the employer's attorneys and risk managers can find someone, one or more individual employees, to blame for the incident, that deflects blame and liability from the facility/organization -- and that is what those people (the hospital's attorneys and risk managers) are paid to do. Once they identify someone to blame, they promptly fire that person and, presto change-o, you're no longer covered by their insurance (heck, they're blaming you for the incident -- they're certainly not going to defend you). I personally saw this very scenario play out many times at different hospitals in my state when I was working as a state surveyor. At that point, if you don't already have your own insurance, you're screwed -- because you can't buy insurance now that will cover you for the incident that has already occurred.

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