 How strong is Galen Insurance Company?
Galen was formed by a group of investors, most of whom are Missouri physicians. Their investment in Galen exceeds Missouri’s minimum requirements for a property and casualty insurance company. Galen retains a certain amount of the risk on each policy and the balance is reinsured.
Are there territorial limits?
Galen intends to operate throughout Missouri.
Does the company specialize in some types of medical practice or exclude some specialties?
No. Galen seeks to cover the spectrum of medical specialties on the theory that this is the best way to diffuse risk.
How does Galen differ from a professional malpractice association, formed under section 383 of Missouri Law?
Galen is a conventional, risk-assuming insurance company. It cannot assess its insureds if claims or expenses exceed expectations.
Why isn’t Galen organized as a mutual assessment company under Section 383 of Missouri Law?
Galen’s founders felt that organizing Galen as a stock, for-profit company was the best way to ensure stability over the long-term. The risk of assessments was felt to undercut the value of the insurance being offered. Furthermore, the statutory requirement that Section 383 companies be not-for-profit has meant in practice that such companies often pay their organizers inflated service fees and are eventually converted to stock for-profit companies.
Will Galen’s claims defense be managed by a certain law firm?
No. Galen’s Vice President for Claims, Russell Oldham, is a veteran of many years in the medical malpractice defense business. Mr. Oldham and the rest of Galen’s management feel that better service and results can be obtained if the company is free to select the best lawyer for each case.
Who was Galen?
Galen was a Greek physician from what is now Turkey who lived from approximately 130 CE to 200 CE. He practiced medicine in Rome, where he was the physician of Marcus Aurelius, the Stoic philosopher and emperor, among others. He performed and described experiments, many involving the dissection of animals. His writing, particularly “On the Natural Faculties”, remained a cornerstone of medical knowledge into the middle ages. |
