The Pennsylvania Medical Society (PAMED) has applauded state Insurance Commissioner Michael Consedine’s decision, announced on Aug. 2, 2011, not to raise the primary limits for professional liability insurance due to uncertainty in market capacity. PAMED worked for many months to prove to the administration that a decision on liability insurance limits should not impose an overall cost increase on physicians.
Every two years, the Department of Insurance is charged with examining the private insurance market capacity in the state and determining whether it is healthy enough to sustain an increase in primary limits in conjunction with an equal decrease in Mcare limits.
In earlier communications with Commissioner Consedine, PAMED contended that raising the limits for primary coverage at this time would have resulted in substantial increases in overall out-of-pocket costs for physicians. This would be especially burdensome for physicians in a time when practice revenues are precarious at best, and physicians face myriad other economic concerns as well, including proposed Medicare decreases.
The commissioner’s decision aligns with PAMED policy to support the phase out of the
Mcare Fund, but not when it would create a financial hardship to physicians.
PAMED remains dedicated to working with the Corbett administration and the General Assembly to phase out Mcare coverage and retire the unfunded Mcare liability without added cost to physicians.