A bill that the legislature in New York is considering could impact medical malpractice insurance for physicians who provide telemedicine abortion services. If the law passes, New York will become the second state to pass a shield law to protect telemedicine abortion providers in the United States.
What impact may this legislation have on malpractice insurance in the state?
Proposed legislation
S1066 will make it more difficult for states that have laws banning abortion to penalize telemedicine providers in New York who provide abortion care to residents of those states. If it passes, clinicians and pharmacists in the state will have protection from extradition, prosecution and loss of license of malpractice insurance related to providing abortion care to out-of-state patients.
Effect on insurance providers
In addition to shielding practitioners from losing malpractice insurance, the new legislation could prevent civil lawsuits against medical providers related to providing services to clients in states where abortion is not legal. This could reduce the risk to insurers who provide medical malpractice and other types of liability coverage to pharmacists and physicians in the state.
As the legal environment surrounding abortion care in general and telemedicine and medication abortion specifically continue to change, insurers need to stay on top of the legal risks that the medical providers they insure face when providing this type of care. Providers must continuously review policies to ensure legal compliance, mitigate risks and formulate potential defense strategies against any resulting medical malpractice or personal injury claims that may arise due to this type of abortion care.