Vital Sounds 2025, Quarter 2
Vital Sounds 2025, Quarter 2
Workforce Issues and Professional Liability Insurance: Are you Covered?
May 1, 2025
Workforce Issues and Professional Liability Insurance: Are you Covered?
May 1, 2025
One of healthcare’s top challenges is recruiting and retaining an adequate workforce to provide quality healthcare to patients. This is especially true for small, rural clinics and hospitals in Kansas, where the loss or retirement of one clinical professional can result in a significant loss of clinical capacity and revenue.
Are Contract Clinicians Covered?
Filling gaps with new hires can take time and be quite challenging, so filling these gaps with contract clinicians is often a solution. However, a frequently misunderstood component of credentialling a contract clinician can be confirming professional liability insurance coverage.
Understanding the Kansas Health Care Provider Insurance Availability Act
The Kansas Health Care Provider Insurance Availability Act (the Act), passed by the Kansas Legislature almost 50 years ago in 1976, provides that all “defined healthcare providers” (see below) maintain specific basic coverage from an authorized insurance company and coverage from the Health Care Stabilization Fund (HCSF).
One of the Act’s key provisions requires that both the basic and HCSF coverage follow the defined healthcare provider wherever they practice in the United States. Therefore, by confirming the basic coverage and HCSF compliance when credentialing a defined healthcare provider, you can be reasonably assured that they and your facility are covered in the case of a claim for medical malpractice.
Unfortunately, Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs), who are not CRNAs or Nurse-Midwives, are not included in the definition of “healthcare provider” for HCSF compliance purposes.
Liability Coverage and APRNs
A separate section of the Nurse Practice Act mandates that APRNs carry malpractice insurance, but it does not allow them to be covered by the HCSF or provide requirements for coverage limits or policy provisions. The policies issued to these healthcare professionals are often issued using different language that often provides exclusions regarding practice locations, types of coverage, and other protections contained in the HCSF law.
These differences in coverage may leave the hospital or clinic vicariously liable for the acts of the contract APRNs and may not provide coverage for your practice location. The financial and reputational damage caused by a lack of adequate coverage can be catastrophic to the hospital or clinic.
KAMMCO's Recommendation: Always Review Your Policy
KAMMCO recommends that any hospital, clinic, or other facility using contract providers request a copy of the full insurance policy and consult with their insurance agent or KAMMCO to determine if there are any gaps in insurance coverage.