Insurance Marketplace Realities 2025 Spring Update – Healthcare Professional Liability

Key takeaways

• Stress on healthcare systems is unprecedented. As the U.S. population ages, demand for medical services will grow much faster than the supply of practitioners, leading to an estimated physician shortage of between 54,100 to 139,000 physicians by 2033.^[1]
• Insurers remain concerned about aberrational verdicts; the average of the top 50 malpractice verdicts increased 50% in 2023 to $48 million from $32 million in 2022.^[2]
• In response, even well-established insurers are carefully monitoring and, in many cases, reducing capacity to as low as $5 million. They are also quoting terms with increased attachment points for underlying coverages, especially professional liability and auto.
• Sexual abuse allegations at teaching hospitals, in particular, and the ensuing batch events continue to be a key concern for underwriters.
• There are concerns about staffing, practitioner burnout and aging workforce. Plaintiff bars use understaffing to their advantage, citing “profits before people.”

Footnotes

1. June 2024 Report from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) Return to article
2. Fortune Magazine 7/2/24 Article – Medical Malpractice Payouts are ballooning and insurers are warning it will cost patients Return to article

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