Corvelia News

Government Consultation on Appropriate Clinical Negligence Cover for Healthcare Professionals

01 Mar 2019

The consultation was commissioned by the Department of Health and Social Care and ran from 6th December 2018 to 28th February 2019. The DHSC is now analysing the feedback received.

This consultation is about medical indemnity cover for healthcare professionals who purchase their own indemnity cover because they are not covered by existing or proposed state-backed schemes (i.e. CNSGP).

It seeks views on 2 options:

1. leave arrangements as they are
2. change legislation to require healthcare professionals who are not covered by any state-backed medical liability scheme to hold cover that is regulated.

Currently, all healthcare professionals who wish to practise in the UK are legally required to hold appropriate clinical negligence cover for the costs of claims and damages awarded to patients arising out of negligence.

The government hold concerns that the current arrangements held by healthcare professionals who are not covered by state-backed schemes could prevent patients getting appropriate compensation and put healthcare professionals at risk of being personally liable for the costs of claims.

This is because these arrangements are mostly discretionary (MDO cover), where the providers are not contractually obliged to meet the costs of any claim and are not subject to prudential or financial conduct regulation. Any policy with Corvelia is a legally enforceable contract and we are also regulated by the PRA and FCA.

According to DHSC, the groups that are likely to be most affected by any changes to the current indemnity arrangements are:

• regulated professionals in the NHS who hold indemnity cover which is not currently regulated, such as primary care dentistry
• private practice of medical doctors and other regulated healthcare professionals
• healthcare professionals in Northern Ireland and Scotland who are not covered by any state-backed indemnity scheme, such as GPs

We await the outcome of this consultation but for further information, a copy of the consultation paper can be found by following this link.