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Medical Liability
Mcare
Last Updated: 12/3/2009
Following the passage of the 2009-2010 state budget, HAP and the Pennsylvania Medical Society jointly filed an Application for Special Relief in Commonwealth Court, asking the court to issue a Preliminary Injunction preventing the state from using the Health Care Provider Retention Account (HCPRA) and Mcare Fund monies transferred to the 2009-2010 Pennsylvania General Fund by the just-enacted state budget for other than their originally intended purpose. During December 2008, the Medical Society and HAP filed an action in the Commonwealth Court seeking transfer of HCPRA funds to the Mcare Fund, and during June 2009, the court rejected the state’s preliminary objections, ruling that a solid argument had been made that the funds should have been transferred. The case is now proceeding to a resolution on the merits. The newest filing serves a dual purpose: first, it seeks to advance the HCPRA case toward a resolution favorable to hospitals and physicians. Second, it institutes a new action seeking to prevent the state from transferring the Mcare Fund balance to the 2009-2010 General Fund (as just enacted in the 2009-2010 state budget). The Medical Society and HAP have asked the court to give the case expedited consideration on two different occasions, both in January on the state’s preliminary objections and again on September 9, after the ruling that the case will go forward on the merits. The need for quick action is urgent, as Pennsylvania could be facing another major upsurge in liability insurance costs as soon as January 2010. That is when an already-scheduled transition from state-provided insurance to private market coverage for physicians and hospitals is tentatively scheduled to begin—a process that Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Joel Ario testified (during February 2008) could result in premium increases for physicians of 23 to 35 percent, depending on a physician’s specialty, and as much as 50 percent for some high-risk specialties.
Trends in Medical Liability Coverage in Pennsylvania (November 2009)
Mcare Fund Background
Preliminary Guide to the Patient Safety Provisions of Act 13 of 2002
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