Please refer to News for current information.

PMSLIC's Loss Prevention discount program underway

(4/17/09) To kick off this year's Loss Prevention Discount Program, PMSLIC has added two new courses to its menu of CME offerings. The new courses are Communication Disconnects: Gaps that Hinder Diagnosis and High Alert Conditions! An Analysis of Claims for Appendicitis, Meningitis, Pneumonia, and Pulmonary Embolism. PMSLIC policyholders can take these or other PMSLIC CME activities to earn a premium discount. If you successfully complete five continuing medical education credits from PMSLIC's LPD Program menu at least 75 days before your policy renewal date, you will receive a 5% discount on the next year's premium. The LPD menu includes courses, online activities, and Consult newsletter issues. Call Risk Management at 800 492-7898 if you have questions.

View Your Available LPD Activities

Order Risk Management Course Books Online

NORCAL and PMSLIC to integrate management, operations

(1/20/09) NORCAL is pleased to announce the integration of the boards of directors and executive leadership teams of NORCAL and PMSLIC. Details regarding the integration can be found in NORCAL's press release.

Important notice about the 2009 mcare assessment

(1/14/09) PMSLIC mailed the 2009 Mcare assessment bill today and wants to make policyholders aware of how to apply the 2002 Mcare credit. In short, health-care providers who did not use the Mcare credit extended by Act 13 passed in 2002 may apply the credit to the 2009 Mcare assessment.

The credit was issued in a letter (see sample), which will need to be physically returned to PMSLIC with the assessment payment. Policyholders who can’t locate their original credit letter can request a reprint by completing a form located on the Mcare Web site. Follow the link called “2002 Credit Letter Reprint Request.”

More details and a calculation worksheet are included with the assessment bill. Payment is due by February 6, 2008.

hib vaccine shortage expected to continue into 2009

(10/24/08) The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) previously confirmed a current shortage of Haemophilus influenzae type B (Hib) vaccines. The shortage, which occurred because of voluntary recalls of several lots of the Hib vaccines, was expected to subside by the fall of 2008. However, the CDC reported October 17, 2008, that Merck & Co., Inc., the vaccine manufacturer, now estimates that full vaccine availability will not be accomplished until mid-2009.

The CDC recommends regular vaccination for infants under 12 months. However, because of the vaccine shortage, the CDC is advising the Hib booster dose NOT be given to healthy children aged 12-15 months. Some physicians have reported that the current shortage is also causing difficulties in obtaining vaccines to administer to children under 12 months. When a physician is not able to give a Hib vaccine that would normally be given, he or she should document in that patient’s chart that the vaccine was not given because the practice had no supply as a result of the shortage. This will verify that the vaccine was not forgotten, but is being postponed because no vaccines are available. In addition, physicians should keep lists of children who do NOT get initial vaccines or the booster doses and should contact the families later, when Hib supplies increase, in order to schedule them and administer the missed vaccinations.

Physicians can confirm this information and get further details at the CDC Web site.

To see a list of national vaccine supplies

PMSLIC policyholders receive 2008 dividend

(9/30/08) On September 26, 2008, the PMSLIC Board of Directors declared a 2008 dividend of 10 percent. The dividend will be paid to insureds renewing their PMSLIC coverage on or after January 1, 2009.

The Board declared the dividend as the result of improvement in prior years’ loss experience and strong financial management. PMSLIC has a participating policy, which permits the company to share the benefit of improved results with its physician insureds through policyholder dividends. It is one of many advantages of insuring with PMSLIC, a physician-directed carrier.

On October 3, a letter announcing the dividend was mailed to policyholders. Additional information is available by calling the Sales & Marketing Department at 800 445-1212.

Medicaid Prescriptions Must Have Three Tamper-Resistant Characteristics by 10/1/08

(9/15/08) A federal law now requires that written or computer-printed prescriptions for Medicaid outpatients be “tamper-resistant.” This law was designed to help prevent prescription fraud—to thwart tampering, forgery, or copying of prescriptions. The second and final phase of implementation of this law must be completed by October 1, 2008. By this date, any prescription given to an outpatient covered by a Medicaid fee-for-service prescription plan must contain three characteristics:

1. A feature to prevent unauthorized copying.

2. A feature to prevent erasure or modification.

3. A feature to prevent counterfeiting.

Written or computer-printed prescriptions must have these three characteristics; prescriptions that are transmitted to a pharmacy verbally, by fax, or over the Internet (e-prescription) do not. Physicians who do not see Medicaid patients are not required to implement the prescription blank requirements, and physicians do not have to use this type of prescription blank for non-Medicaid patients.

For more information go to the:

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Web site

PA Department of Public Welfare Web site

NORCAL Group acquires millennium insurance company

(9/3/08) The Pennsylvania Insurance Department has approved the acquisition of Millennium Insurance Company (MIC) by the NORCAL Group. On September 3, MIC policyholders became PMSLIC policyholders, and we are pleased to welcome them with the high level of service and value that they deserve from their professional liability insurance provider. For more information, please refer to the Welcome Letter from PMSLIC’s board chair, the benefits brochure and the information contained on the PMSLIC Web site.

PMSLIC expands loss prevention discount to recognize ncqa medical home designation

(4/21/08) PMSLIC Insurance Company is pleased to announce that policyholders who achieve the National Committee for Quality Assurance’s (NCQA) designation of “Patient Centered Medical Home™” will receive a 5% discount on their 2009 policies.

Read More

PMSLIC Bills 2008 Mcare assessment

(3/5/08) PMSLIC has billed policyholders the 2008 Mcare assessment at the full amount as there is no continuation of the abatement program at this time.  Payments must be postmarked by March 31, 2008 to ensure there are no Mcare coverage issues in the future due to delayed payment.

Although there may be announcements of one or more delays regarding the assessment, we advise our policyholders to pay the assessment by the March 31 deadline.  We believe this is the best way to protect your interests in any future reported claims.

Update on Mcare Billing

(1/21/08) To comply with the PA Department of Insurance's directive to bill the full 2008 Mcare assessment with a due date of March 31, 2008, we mailed payment information to all PMSLIC policyholders. Enclosed with the billing information were copies of letters from Governor Rendell and the Insurance Commissioner. 

We are monitoring the abatement situation very closely and will keep you informed of important developments as they occur. Additional information is also available on the Mcare Web site. Please contact your PMSLIC underwriter or your agent if you have any questions.

Don't Miss Out On Your PMSLIC.com Account Benefits!

(7/12/07) If you are a policyholder or an authorized registered user, we encourage you to sign in regularly to the secure area of the PMSLIC Web site to benefit from the protected information available only to you:

• Loss Prevention Discount (LPD) program activities
• Risk management information and forms
• Certificate of Insurance
• Account information, including an account activity report and your current invoice

Periodically signing in to the site keeps your account active. If your account remains inactive for longer than one year your user ID and password will be disabled as a security measure.

If you have any questions regarding the registration process or have an account that has become disabled due to inactivity, please contact PMSLIC's Technical Support Help Desk at 800.445.1212, extension 7777, or at helpdesk@pmslic.com during our normal business hours ( 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST).

MEDICAL SOCIETY OF DELAWARE ENDORSES pmslic TO OFFER COVERAGE TO PHYSICIANS

(5/4/07) PMSLIC was recently endorsed by the Medical Society of Delaware. We have begun to write coverage for physicians in that state through the state society's insurance subsidiary, MSDIS. Click "More" to view a copy of the press release that was issued to announce the endorsement and PMSLIC's entry into the state.

Read news release

A.M. Best Upgrades PMSLIC Rating to A (Excellent)

(4/19/07) The A.M. Best Company upgraded PMSLIC’s financial strength rating to A (Excellent) as a result of a pooling arrangement PMSLIC entered into earlier this year with NORCAL, our parent company.

You can read Best's press release about our upgrade by going to the "News & Research" section of Best's Web site: www.ambest.com.

Notice to Deployed Physicians

(3/22/07) Physicians who inactivate their medical liability insurance policy due to military deployment need to complete Mcare's declaration of compliance form either before they leave or as soon as they return from duty. This will prevent them from receiving a non-compliance notice.

The declaration of compliance form can be found on the Mcare Web site under Coverage Forms - Declaration of Compliance Form.

PMSLIC will suspend coverage for a policyholder who is called to active duty for a period longer than 60 days. A credit will be applied to the premium for the period of suspension, and further billings will be suspended until the policyholder returns. For instructions on how to notify PMSLIC, please see the section on “Changes to Practice.”

Policyholders Receive 2006 Dividend

(11/9/06) On November 7, 2006, the PMSLIC Board of Directors declared a 2006 dividend of 11 percent. The dividend will be paid to policyholders renewing their PMSLIC coverage on or after January 1, 2007.

The Board declared the dividend as the result of improvement in prior years’ loss experience and strong, financial management. PMSLIC has a participating policy, which permits the company to share the benefit of improved results with its physician policyholders through policyholder dividends. It is one of many advantages of insuring with PMSLIC, a physician-directed carrier.

PMSLIC ANNOUNCES 2008 rate reduction

PMSLIC's filing for an overall 11% rate reduction has been approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Insurance. The rates will be effective January 1, 2008. The decision to file for the rate reduction was reached by the company board of directors following a thorough review of the company's loss experience.

Tips for Credentialing Process

(7/31/06) We have been informed that a relatively new credentialing process has been made available to medical practices. CAQH, a not-for-profit alliance of health plans, networks and trade associations, has developed the Universal Credentialing DataSource®. This national process has eliminated the need for multiple credentialing applications through an online standardized application service.

Physicians who use the CAQH online credentialing process will be asked to provide their medical malpractice insurance information. PMSLIC policyholders using this online process should do the following:

1. Go to www.caqh.org.
2. Select the "Universal Credentialing DataSource link."
3. Select the "PROVIDERS" link.
4. On the "log-in" page, select "Logging in for the first time?"
5. When prompted to provide your medical malpractice insurance information, select "others not listed" from the drop-down menu if your carrier is not listed.
6. Enter "PMSLIC Insurance Company" and our street address (1700 Bent Creek Blvd., Mechanicsburg, PA 17050) where indicated.

Letter to Policyholders Reported No Rate Increase for 2007

(6/27/06) At the end of June, PMSLIC mailed a letter to policyholders from our Board Chair, Jaan Sidorov, MD. The letter highlighted two important issues for policyholders:

1. 2007 Rates - PMSLIC will not be requesting a rate increase for 2007.
2. A.M. Best Rating - Our A.M. Best rating of B++ (Very Good) was affirmed.

Read letter from Dr. Sidorov

Find Account Information Online

(3/6/06) PMSLIC added policyholder account information to our selection of services for certain registered users of PMSLIC.com. Experience how online account information can benefit you and your practice.

Accounting and Billing

PMSLIC Implements Upgrades to Web Site

(1/31/06) On January 31, PMSLIC implemented enhancements to PMSLIC.com in order to provide additional information specifically for policyholders in a secure manner. Policyholders are asked to register to gain access to and benefit from the new features.

Changes to PMSLIC.com encompass:

• a new secure section of the site for registered users. Sign in is required.
• the Certificate of Insurance and Risk Management resources previously available on PMSLIC.com moved to the new secure section.
• new features for policyholders are implemented, including online account information and Loss Prevention Discount Program status reports.

Policyholders will receive more information in the mail in early February. A letter introducing the Web site enhancements was mailed along with information on the 2006 Loss Prevention Discount Program.

Retiring? Don't Forget Mcare

(5/1/06) The phone call from our policyholder tells a familiar story. Dr. Miller, a 71-year-old PMSLIC policyholder, decided to retire mid-way through the policy year. PMSLIC billed him the annual Mcare assessment at the abated amount in February including notice that he must successfully apply to only pay the reduced amount. Dr. Miller paid the abated amount and then retires in June. PMSLIC returns the Mcare credit due to him, but Dr. Miller does not apply for the Mcare abatement either before or after his retirement is effective. The following spring, after the application period expires, Dr. Miller is surprised to receive an Mcare bill for the remainder of the full assessment now due.

PMSLIC, as a primary carrier, serves as a billing administrator for Mcare. As such, we handle calls of this nature on a regular basis and must explain to our policyholders why payment of the Mcare assessment is required despite unique situations involving physician death, retirement, relocation out of state or certain employment arrangements. In this circumstance where the insured physician retired mid-way through the policy year, Mcare coverage is required for the time period that he was in full-time practice. PMSLIC automatically billed the Mcare coverage at the abated amount and informed Dr. Miller he needed to apply, but because Dr. Miller didn’t take the steps to apply for the abatement, he is responsible for remitting payment of the full Mcare assessment. Had he applied, and was otherwise eligible, Dr. Miller would have been exempt from repayment of the full assessment.

No one can completely prepare for what tomorrow may bring. PMSLIC strongly urges our policyholders to apply for the Mcare abatement as soon as possible. By completing the online Mcare abatement application, policyholders can ensure that despite changing circumstances, they have submitted the necessary information to be considered for abatement eligibility. If eligible, Mcare will e-mail an eligibility status letter—as well as mail a hardcopy—to the policyholder, who, in turn, is responsible for sending a copy to PMSLIC to complete the process.

Abatement repayment is exempt if the physician:

• is enrolled in an approved residency/fellowship program;
• dies prior to the end of the retention period;
• is disabled and unable to practice prior to the end of the retention period;
• is called to active military duty prior to the end of the retention period; or
• retires and is at least 70 years of age prior to the end of the retention period.

Mcare Abatement Frequently Asked Questions for Health-Care Providers