What Do I Do if My Doctor Doesn’t Have Enough Insurance to Cover My Med Mal Claim?

Although Ohio doesn’t require doctors to have medical malpractice insurance, most hospitals and clinics they work for do. In addition, self-employed doctors who work as contractors or who own their own practices also usually purchase medical malpractice insurance to protect themselves.

Because of this, there’s a very good chance any doctor you file a medical malpractice claim against is insured. However, the amount of medical malpractice coverage doctors have may vary significantly. This also means that, depending on your injury and its severity, your doctor’s malpractice insurance limits may not fully cover your damages.

In this blog, we explore your options if your doctor’s medical malpractice coverage isn’t enough and explain how an experienced Ohio medical malpractice lawyer can help.

How Much Medical Malpractice Insurance Do Doctors in Ohio Typically Have?

Most Ohio hospitals and clinics require their physicians to carry coverage of $1 million per occurrence and $3 million per claim. Some high-risk specialties, such as obstetrics, neurosurgery, and anesthesiology, may require higher coverage limits due to the increased risk of severe and permanently disabling injuries or wrongful death.

Independent contractors and doctors who own private practices may choose lower or higher limits based on their risk exposure and financial situation.

Your Options if Your Doctor’s Malpractice Insurance Coverage Isn’t Enough

Medical malpractice policies are designed to cover most malpractice claims. However, some malpractice-related damages are catastrophic for patients and their families, with damages totaling several million dollars or more. In cases like these, typical malpractice policies aren’t enough to cover all of a patient’s damages.

If your damages exceed your doctor’s malpractice insurance policy, you have several options for getting the compensation you deserve, including:

Hold the Hospital or Clinic Liable

If your doctor was employed by a hospital or healthcare system, you may be able to sue the hospital under vicarious liability. The hospital might be partially or fully responsible for your malpractice-related damages if:

• It failed to properly vet the doctor before hiring.
• It allowed negligent care despite previous malpractice complaints.
• You reasonably believed the doctor was a hospital employee, rather than a contractor, while they were treating you.

Sue Other Negligent Parties

If other medical professionals contributed to your injury, such as nurses, anesthesiologists, or pharmacists, you may be able to file claims against them as well. If a defective drug or medical device played a role, you could also sue the manufacturer.

File a Claim with an Excess Insurance Policy

Some doctors and hospitals carry umbrella or excess liability insurance beyond the standard $1 million/$3 million coverage. Your attorney can investigate whether additional policies exist and help you pursue compensation through those.

Pursue the Doctor’s Personal Assets

If your malpractice award or settlement exceeds the doctor’s insurance limits, you may be able to collect directly from the doctor's personal assets. Ohio law allows you to garnish wages, seize bank accounts, or place liens on property if the doctor doesn’t have enough coverage. However, some assets, like retirement accounts and primary residences, may be protected under homestead exemptions.

What Are the Costliest Medical Malpractice-Related Injuries and Complications?

All types of medical malpractice have the potential for causing devastating injuries that can overwhelm health insurance policies and put a major strain on patients’ finances. Some of the most expensive include:

• Birth Injuries: Babies who suffer birth injuries often require lifelong medical care, physical therapy, assistive devices, and home modifications to accommodate their disability. They can also face lifelong lost earning potential if their conditions are expected to prevent them from ever obtaining gainful employment.
• Surgical Errors: These errors can result in permanent disability and loss of function, severe infections, and internal bleeding. They also may require revision surgeries, which further increase costs to victims.
• Anesthesia Errors: When too much or too little anesthesia is administered, patients may experience severe complications, such as awareness and pain during a procedure, neurological injuries, heart damage, and more.
• Misdiagnosis or Delayed Diagnosis: When medical problems aren’t diagnosed immediately or correctly, patients can suffer devastating complications. A heart attack may go from treatable to life-threatening, while cancer may progress from Stage I to Stage IV.
• Medication Errors: Patients who receive the wrong dosages of medications or the wrong medications entirely can suffer serious health problems and injuries. Overdoses can result in organ damage, while the wrong medication can cause unnecessary and devastating side effects or drug interactions.
• Amputations: Medical malpractice may result in amputations when doctors fail to diagnose infections or surgeons operate on and remove the wrong limbs. In addition to being psychologically devastating, amputations can also result in significant medical expenses and lost wages.

Contact Our Ohio Medical Malpractice Lawyers for a Free Consultation

Filing successful medical malpractice claims isn’t easy. It can be even more difficult when your damages exceed your doctor’s malpractice insurance limits. But at Nurenberg, Paris, Heller & McCarthy, we believe patients deserve maximum compensation after negligence causes them to suffer serious injuries and illnesses, regardless of what insurance policies say or offer.

Our Cleveland medical malpractice lawyers have the experience you need to build a successful case against your doctor, hospital, or clinic. We’ll work hard to prove negligence caused your injury and find every available option for getting you compensation. Contact us today for a free consultation and to learn how we can help.

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