When I recently scheduled an OB-GYN appointment, the first available opening was nearly two months out. Many women already wait months to see a physician for routine care. The critical nature of the aging OB-GYN workforce is clear, and this crisis will force some substantial changes for both patients and insurers.

Earlier this month, the Ohio Court of Appeals ruled on the medical liability case Jones vs. MetroHealth Medical Center. A key portion of this ruling pertains to the determination of economic damages related to future medical costs. Specifically, the court ruled to award the plaintiff an amount sufficient to cover the premium on future health insurance policies that the plaintiff would purchase. This is a radical shift from past practice.  

Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary National Indemnity Company has announced that it has agreed to buy Medical Liability Mutual Insurance Company (MLMIC). Terms of the deal were not made public. Warren Buffett’s admiration of MLMIC was clear as he called it, “a gem of a company that has protected New York’s physicians, mid-level providers, hospitals and dentists like no other for over 40 years.”

I recently attended the Casualty Actuarial Society’s Loss Reserve Seminar. During the conference, I attended two sessions on medical professional liability insurance (MPL) and led a roundtable discussion on MPL reserving. It reminded me of professional football.

The recent National Risk Retention Association (NRRA) conference in Chicago provided an excellent opportunity to not only look back at the role risk retention groups (RRGs) have played, but also to look forward at their evolving and expanding role in the U.S. liability insurance market.