By Tom Murphy For the second time in six months, the Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) has approved a rate decrease that will affect all Florida businesses. Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier’s statement attributes the 1.8% overall decrease to the recent federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The new rates will take effect for all new

As featured in the South Florida Hospital News and Healthcare Report, March 2018 By Daniel Casciato One of the biggest medical malpractice changes South Florida healthcare providers need to be mindful of this year is last year’s decision by the Florida Supreme Court to strike down malpractice damage caps. In June 2017, the high court

By Julie Danna – Last November I read an article on cyber attacks in healthcare that broke down the price of data on the black market. It estimated that a credit-card number is worth $1, a Social Security number is worth $3, and a medical record is worth $200. This really caught my attention and

By Matt Gracey The Florida Supreme Court’s recent overturn of the caps on non-economic damage awards in medical malpractice cases is the final nail in the coffin of tort reforms enacted in 2003. The frequency of lawsuits against doctors and correspondently the premiums for malpractice insurance in Florida since 2003 have dropped on average about 65%

Q: We keep hearing that a medical malpractice insurance hard market is coming in Florida. What does this really mean and when should we be concerned? A: The market cycle for malpractice insurance in Florida has fairly predictable cycles, with extreme fluctuations in pricing and insurers’ underwriting. For example, the late 1990s and early 2000s were

It appears that the 2017 tax year is going to be exactly like 2016’s, if not worse, with cyberattacks targeting small to medium-size organizations. Here is how the extremely simple process works: An HR department or their Payroll staff receives an email that appears to come from their CEO or CFO, requesting a digital copy

As all Florida businesses large and small come to the realization that their workers’ compensation premium has increased almost 15% as of December 1st, 2016, most of them are completely unaware that this increase is only the beginning of additional increases if the Florida legislature does not take action this session to alleviate the effects of

By Vanessa Orr Physicians who invest in malpractice insurance in Florida have had the benefit of buying in a soft market – characterized by low rates and low claims – but according to insurance specialist Matt Gracey, CEO of Danna-Gracey, the leading independent medical malpractice insurance agency in the state, that is about to change.

Medical expert witness testimony is essential to all medical malpractice legal proceedings. Usually, without a medical expert, plaintiffs cannot proceed to trial, and defendants are usually doomed to an adverse jury verdict. Medical experts are recruited in many ways, even from proprietary companies who offer a diverse variety of experts. Many professional organizations, including the

Laura M. Cascella, MA Natural disasters, although devastating, offer opportunities to examine various aspects of disaster planning, preparedness, and response — including those related to healthcare. Specifically, several major disasters over the past decade have provided a glimpse of the many ways in which electronic health records (EHRs) are capable of transforming disaster recovery efforts