Medical liability coverage for Texas physicians

Claims-made policy

A claims-made policy is designed to protect you during the active policy period, usually one year. If you do not renew your claims-made policy when it expires, you no longer have coverage for any claims that may arise in the future that are alleged to have occurred during the time your policy was in force. Physicians who wish to continue coverage under a claims-made policy must purchase supplemental coverage, such as tail coverage or prior acts coverage. If neither tail coverage nor prior acts coverage are purchased when a claims-made policy expires, any future claims that might arise from services performed during the policy period will not be covered. Essentially, it will be as though you never had coverage.

Claims-made policies are attractive because of their affordability. The policy price generally escalates by an established percentage over a 4- to 5-year period and then the policy matures.

Occurrence policy

An occurrence policy provides permanent insurance coverage for incidents that occur during the policy period, even if they are reported after the policy expires or is cancelled. Occurrence policies are generally more expensive to purchase, but it is not necessary to buy supplemental coverage like tail or prior acts coverage after an occurrence policy expires. Your coverage continues to protect you into the future.

Tail coverage

Tail coverage, also called a reporting endorsement, is available for purchase when your claims-made policy is cancelled or non-renewed. Tail coverage continues insurance protection under your claims-made policy for claims arising in the future but which occurred during the time your policy was in force. Tail coverage is expensive to purchase because it continues coverage into the future for a specified period of time.

TMLT offers free tail coverage to physicians who:

In addition, TMLT waives the tail premium at any time if the physician should retire due to medical disability or death.

Prior acts coverage

Another type of supplemental coverage is prior acts coverage, which may be purchased from your new insurance carrier when you change carriers. Prior acts coverage, sometimes called "nose coverage," covers incidents that occurred under a previous claims-made policy and which have not yet been reported. If new claims arise that occurred during the prior acts period, they are reported to your new carrier to be covered under the prior acts policy.

Cyber liability coverage

TMLT's cyber liability coverage offers protection for network security and privacy-related exposures faced by physicians as a result of lost laptops, theft of hardware or data, improper disposal of medical records, hacking or virus attacks, and rogue employees. The limits for this type of coverage are $50,000 per insured physician/entity.

Premises liability coverage

All TMLT policies include a Limited Professional Premises Liability Coverage Endorsement. The limits of liability for this coverage are $200,000 each occurrence/$200,000 aggregate. Under this endorsement, TMLT will pay as compensatory damages for covered claims arising out of premises injury or damages to any patient which:

The endorsement only applies to claims by patients, and it does not eliminate the need for a general liability policy for a physician's practice

Locum tenens coverage

All TMLT policyholders can request locum tenens coverage for up to 21 days per policy year without an additional premium charge. Coverage for more than 21 days will incur a fee of $500 per day. (Locum tenens coverage was previously only available to policyholders by an optional endorsement to the policy.)

Locum tenens coverage provides indemnity and defense coverage to a substitute physician who assumes responsibility for the policyholder's patients during a scheduled absence. Requests for locum tenens coverage require written notice in advance of the scheduled absence, and the substitute physician must submit an application to the TMLT Underwriting Department for review and acceptance.

Moonlighting coverage for residents

TMLT offers medical liability coverage for residents who moonlight outside their training program. Our moonlighting program offers premium discounts on non-assessable claims-made policies.

Rising Star coverage for first-year physicians

If you are establishing your first practice after completing your residency, TMLT offers first- and second-year premium discounts.

Medical liability protection for other health care professionals

Health care professionals working with TMLT policyholders are eligible for coverage through Texas Medical Insurance Company, TMLT's wholly-owned subsidiary. Claims-made or occurrence coverage is offered at a variety of limits for ancillary staff, including:

Texas Medical Insurance Company, TMIC, was organized in 1995 to provide additional insurance products for physician practices.

Visit the TMIC web site for more information or to apply.