FEATURE ■
Commercial general liability insur- ance to protect an ASC against lia- bility claims in the event of an injury or property damages. This type of insurance, Wells explains, often cov- ers employee benefits liability, which protects an ASC in the event of an error in the administration of the ASC’s employee benefits program.
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Professional liability insurance to protect against medical malpractice by clinicians for services provided to patients. This, Wells points out, is dif- ferent and separate from the medical professional liability insurance that physicians purchase independently.
■ Full Coverage
Make sure that your ASC has the insurance protection it needs BY ROBERT KURTZ
W
hile the number of insurance policies an ASC must purchase
might seem excessive, they are a neces- sity, says Tona Savoie, RN, administra- tive director of Bayou Region Surgical Center in Thibodaux, Louisiana. “You need the insurance to cover your assets because you never know if a valid problem will occur or if you encounter someone who feels like they were not treated properly and decides to take action against your ASC.” “Under normal circumstances, you are not going to need any of them,” adds Tom Jacobs,
chief executive
officer and co-founder of human resources and business office solutions provider MedHQ in Westchester, Illinois, talking about the multiple insurance policies he encourages ASCs to consider. “But if you do not have them, you can get caught off guard and face serious ramifications.”
16 ASC FOCUS MARCH 2015 ■
Basic Insurance Types When it comes to insurance, W. Michael Wells, chairman of Hylant of Indianap- olis, an insurance brokerage and risk management solutions provider in Indi- anapolis, Indiana, recommends that ASCs consider the following: ■
Cyber liability insurance, which is becoming increasingly important as data breaches are becoming more commonplace, Wells says. ASCs might want to consider this insur- ance because of the increased risk of data theft of both patient and employee information. Policies can cover a variety of expenses associ- ated with breaches, including fines and penalties, notification costs, credit monitoring and legal expense. This also will protect against any risks associated with an ASC’s web site such as hacking, cracking, pri- vacy breach, phishing, viruses, etc.
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Property insurance that will pro- tect all owned assets or assets that a surgery center is responsible for by lease, other contract or lender. “This will include buildings and business personal property, includ- ing electronic data processing equip- ment,” Wells says. “This should be reviewed to make sure you consider property that is on and off premises.”
Business interruption insurance to protect against loss of income in the event a center is forced to cease operations for a period of time, thus cutting off cash flow for the operat- ing company and personnel.
Auto liability insurance for all owned, non-owned or leased auto- mobiles that could be used as part of an ASC’s business operations, such as an administrator visiting physi- cian practices or an employee driv- ing to a bank on the ASC’s behalf.
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Crime insurance, which would include coverage for employee dis- honesty, computer fraud and elec- tronic funds transfer fraud.
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Executive risk insurance, which would include directors’ and officers’ liabil- ity insurance (for claims made against those serving on an ASC’s board of directors), employment practices lia- bility (to protect against wrongful acts arising from the employment process, such as discrimination, sexual harass- ment and wrongful termination) and
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