California market
Southern California does not have one medical malpractice rate territory.
Each carrier groups the five counties in a different way. Check the carrier territory before you compare filed rates.
Compare the carrier territory systems
Each carrier can assign the same county to a different territory.
| County | TDC | MedPro | NORCAL | MIEC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | Territory B | Area 1 | Territory 4 | 1.900 relativity |
| Orange | Territory B | Area 1 | Territory 4 | 1.900 relativity |
| Riverside | Territory A | Area 1 | Territory 5 | 1.900 relativity |
| San Diego | Territory C | Area 2 | Territory 3 | 1.500 relativity |
| Imperial | Territory C | Area 2 | Territory 3 | 1.000 relativity |
California Department of Insurance filings 14-4043, 13-3635, 14-7766/14-7767, and 20-4143 do not use one Southern California territory. Los Angeles and Orange counties stay together in all four manuals. Riverside joins them in two manuals. San Diego and Imperial stay together in three manuals.
The county is one rate input. The physician's specialty, procedures, limits, prior care, and claims history also affect the premium. Use the territory table to check geography. Use the complete insurance application to describe the practice.
Each carrier groups the five counties differently
Each row in the table shows how four carriers classify one county. A territory label has meaning only in the carrier manual that defines it.
Los Angeles and Orange counties
The Doctors Company places both counties in Territory B. MedPro places both in Area 1. NORCAL places both in Territory 4. MIEC applies its 1.900 geographic rate multiplier to both.
A move between Los Angeles and Orange can keep the same territory under these four manuals. Check the application and policy notice terms for required disclosure of the new legal address, facility, lease, clinicians, services, and first work date.
Riverside County
The Doctors Company and NORCAL group Riverside with San Bernardino. MedPro groups Riverside with Los Angeles, Orange, and San Bernardino. MIEC includes Riverside in its 1.900 group with Los Angeles, Kern, Orange, and San Bernardino.
An Orange County practice that adds a Riverside location changes territory under The Doctors Company and NORCAL. It does not change territory under MedPro or MIEC.
San Diego and Imperial counties
The Doctors Company, MedPro, and NORCAL place San Diego and Imperial counties together. MIEC applies a 1.500 geographic rate multiplier to San Diego and Ventura. Imperial stays in MIEC's 1.000 group.
A San Diego practice that adds Imperial County work should check the application and policy notice terms for location disclosure. Three carrier territories can stay the same, but the facility, duties, contract, and work dates can change.
List every place where care occurs
For each work location, record the legal facility name, street address, first and last work dates, clinicians, procedures, responsible entity, and contract.
Include:
- Hospitals where a physician has privileges or call duties.
- Ambulatory surgery centers and accredited office surgery settings.
- Endoscopy, imaging, infusion, laboratory, and pathology sites.
- Skilled nursing, rehabilitation, correctional, and long-term care facilities.
- Patient homes, mobile routes, events, and temporary clinics.
- Telehealth work and the state where the patient receives care.
- Moonlighting and locum tenens assignments outside the main group.
A declarations page can show only one office address. That address does not describe a physician who works at several sites.
Check the specialty class separately
The county selects a geographic input. The specialty and procedures select a class input.
A psychiatrist and a neurosurgeon at the same Los Angeles address do not have the same base rate. Two orthopedic surgeons can also have different classes if one performs spine surgery.
Keep these items with each quote:
- County and carrier territory.
- Carrier class and written class description.
- Limits and policy form.
- Procedures and practice facts used for the class.
Compare premiums only after these items match. A lower premium can result from a different county, class, limit, clinician list, or procedure list.
Insure each part of an expansion
A new location can add a lease, property entity, equipment, staff, facility contract, or new procedure. When the application or policy requires disclosure, submit the related changes together.
Medical malpractice insurance covers specified professional services and insured parties. General liability can cover premises liability. Property insurance can cover business property. Workers' compensation applies to employees. Cyber insurance can cover specified systems, records, and events.
Confirm which policy covers each person, entity, location, and service. An address endorsement does not add every type of coverage that a new office needs.
Record each physician's complete schedule
Many physicians work in more than one county. List employed work, independent contracts, call duties, medical-director duties, telehealth, and ownership interests.
For each role, state the billing entity and expected policy. Record the first and last work dates. For claims-made coverage, compare the old policy's extended-reporting provisions with any prior-acts coverage expressly accepted under the new policy.
Repeat this review for every physician, nurse practitioner, and physician assistant in a group. Also check whether the group shares one annual policy limit.
Use the legal facility name
A medical campus can include a hospital, physician group, surgery center, clinic, imaging company, and laboratory. These operations can have separate legal names and policies.
The California Department of Health Care Access and Information Facility Finder provides a facility's legal name and type, while Medical Board records identify outpatient surgery settings. These public records should agree with privileges, contracts, and certificates of insurance.
For office procedures, list anesthesia, recovery space, imaging, pathology, drugs, and implanted devices. These services can change the carrier class and facility requirements.
Compare filed rates with the quote
The filed manuals show county groups, class descriptions, and base rates. A base rate is the starting amount before individual rating changes.
The final premium can include claims history, prior acts, part-time status, limits, schedule rating, entities, and procedures. Territory and class establish the starting point; individual rating changes and policy terms explain the remaining difference.
A valid regional comparison matches geography and clinical work
Each quote should use the correct county group and the same clinicians, entities, facilities, procedures, class, limits, policy form, and coverage dates. A multicounty expansion also needs a documented first-work date and applicable coverage date for each new location and service.