The Change Mariner

Insurers Push Doctors to Drop Older Patients

Beacon Journal:

The insurance industry argues that rates are set to cover the cost of doing business. And in the case of nursing homes, the industry says that cost is increasing because of a rising number of lawsuits.

Frank O'Neil, vice president of corporate communications for malpractice insurer ProAssurance, said the company has made it a policy to stop insuring doctors whose main business is nursing home care.

The lawsuit climate in nursing homes, O'Neil said, is worse than any other area of malpractice law, "bar none.''

Another problem, he said, is "increasingly, that nursing homes are not carrying enough insurance, so we become the deep pockets'' that plaintiffs and their attorneys go after.

In Norman's case, though, that risk seems low, considering he's been named in just two malpractice lawsuits and subsequently dropped from both.

And Nemer has been named in just one malpractice suit, which also was dismissed.

"I have no history of cases, and my premiums still went up more than 300 percent,'' Nemer said, explaining that his rates rose from $6,000 in 2002 to $21,000 in 2003.

When Nemer asked his insurer why he was being forbidden to treat nursing home patients, he was told that they present a high risk of lawsuits.

"The government controls what we charge,'' Nemer said. "Why can't they have some control over the insurance companies? These guys have absolutely no controls. They can do whatever they want. They can charge whatever they want. They can drop a doctor for no reason at all.''