Pharmacist insurance is a specialized protection program for pharmacists. Eligible professionals are self-employed pharmacists, retail pharmacists, clinical pharmacists, pharmacy consultants, and long-term care pharmacists. Policies available are general liability, malpractice, workers’ compensation, and more.
Pharmacist Malpractice Insurance
Malpractice is a very common exposure when working as a pharmacist. Patients can sue if they experience harm due to errors and oversights. Here is an example:
- A pharmacist had to settle for $1 million after failing to evaluate the contraindication of escitalopram and methadone given to a patient (Source: Anton vs Brown)
You can get malpractice insurance as a protection. Also called referred as professional liability insurance, malpractice insurance provides $2 million-$3 million you can use to cover settlements, defense costs, and court judgments if you face a claim for:
- Medical negligence
- Misinterpreting the prescription of the physician
- Giving the wrong medicine
- Giving the wrong dosage of medicine
Pharmacist professional liability insurance is highly specialized. And so, it will also provide these benefits:
- $25,000-$30,000 coverage for costs involving alleged and actual HIPAA violations
- $5,000-$10,000 cost reimbursement for claims and investigations that professional regulatory boards file against you
- $25,000-$50,000 for settlements, defense costs, and court judgments if a patient accuses you of committing molestation or sexual abuse
General Liability Insurance for Pharmacists
As a pharmacist, you might also be liable for the bodily injuries or property damage of patients, vendors, independent contractors, and other third parties.
General liability insurance provides $1 million-$2 million each time a third party files a claim for bodily injury or property damage. Use this to:
- Cover the medical treatment of the claimant
- Reimburse the damaged property of the claimant
- Pay attorney fees, investigation fees, and other defense costs
- Cover court judgments
You get general liability insurance as a broad-form policy. And so, this pharmacist liability insurance grants additional benefits, particularly
- $2 million coverage for your liability to products and completed operations
- $300,000 indemnification to the landlord if a space you’re renting gets damaged by fire
Employment Practices Liability Insurance for Pharmacists
Malpractice insurance only covers sexual harassment claims filed by patients. Coverage doesn’t apply if associates sue you for it. Employment practices liability insurance grants protection against sexual harassment claims filed by employees. In fact, other violations of employee rights are also covered such as:
- Wrongful termination
- Discrimination
- Failure to promote
- Retaliation
- Supervisory negligence
- Failure to hire
Employment practices liability insurance grants a minimum $25,000-$100,000.
Commercial Auto Insurance for Pharmacists
If you own a car and use it occasionally for business purposes, then consider replacing your personal auto insurance with commercial auto insurance.
The features of commercial auto insurance vary. Nonetheless, these are its common uses:
- Provide $300,000 minimum coverage for bodily injuries or property damage you cause while driving a car for commercial purposes
- Cover parts repair or replacement and labor costs if your car gets damaged by fire, theft, vandalism, civil commotion, riot, collision, and other covered perils
Workers Compensation Insurance for Pharmacists
Workers’ compensation insurance applies if you or your full-time and part-time employees sustain an occupational disease or injury. Purchasing this insurance allows you to cover the following costs without using company or personal funds:
- Surgeries, therapies, EMT service fees, and other costs for medical treatment
- Hospital bills for laboratory, nursing, food, lodging, imaging, etc.
- Prescription medicines
- After-hospital visits
- Expenses for rehabilitation and retraining
- Lost wages
- Funeral expenses and allowance to dependents.
Workers’ compensation insurance has no set limits. The worker’s comp law of your state determines how much money you can get from workers comp.
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Commercial Property Insurance for Pharmacists
Though not included in pharmacist liability insurance packages, commercial property insurance is available as a stand-alone policy. It will cover the replacement cost of the building you own, rent, or lease to provide services, store, and sell medicines.
The minimum coverage you get is $10,000-$25,000. Commercial property insurance applies when building destruction or damage is caused by:
- Fire
- Theft
- Vandalism
- Malicious mischief
- Civil commotion
- Riot
- Sprinkler leakage
- Rain
Business Interruption Insurance for Pharmacists
Most of the time, commercial property insurance will come with a business interruption floater. Business interruption insurance supplements lost revenues if you need to relocate, renovate a damaged building, and wait for an economic crisis to pass.
The insurance money you receive from business interruption insurance can be used to cover employee wages, utility services, loans, mortgage, rent, lease, and other operational costs.
Pharmacy Business Owners Policy Cost
A business owner’s policy is a combination of general liability and commercial property insurance. Get this if you’re looking for a quick coverage against liabilities and business property damage or loss.
So why get a business owner’s policy? One advantage is that its cost is cheaper than buying general liability insurance and commercial property insurance separately. Moreover, a business owner’s policy might offer floaters for additional protection.
Pharmacist Liability Insurance Cost
There’s no fixed rate for the pharmacist liability insurance cost. Insurance companies consider many factors when determining how much you can expect to pay for insurance coverage.
The average cost of pharmacist insurance is about $69.50 per month or $834 per year for a $1 million general liability coverage.
| Company | Cost per month | Cost per year | |
| CoverWallet | $53.25 | $639.00 | |
| ASHP | $68 | $816 | |
| HPSO | $72 | $864 | |
| Proliability | $73 | $876 |
Help others make better decisions
Best Pharmacist Liability Insurance Companies
CoverWallet
CoverWallet is an insurance broker with an online quotes comparison platform for druggist liability insurance and property insurance policies. And so, with this company, you can look for the best options in one go. Upon buying insurance, CoverWallet automatically creates an account for you in its MyCoverWallet app.
Average cost: $53.25 per month
Our rating: 10/10
Pros
- Compare pharmacist insurance quotes online
- No deductibles on general liability insurance
- No hidden charges
- Cancel your policy anytime for free
Cons
- Not an insurance company but an insurance broker
ASHP Insurance
ASHP stands for the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. it is a professional society that is made for pharmacists who work in hospitals and other health environments.
They have several publications and they work closely with insurance companies to provide their members with coverage.ASHP pharmacist liability insurance is underwritten by Mercer.
Average cost: $68 per month
Our rating: 10/10
Pros
- Provides you with an attorney
- Available as part of ASHP membership
- Reasonable price
Cons
- Not very flexible
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Proliability Insurance
Proliability is a professional liability insurance group that covers many employees and even students in the healthcare field. They are administered by Mercer, and they work with physical therapists, dentists, nurses, and pharmacists.
Average cost: $73 per month
Our rating: 10/10
Pros
- Huge range of coverage options
- Experience working with pharmacists
- Wage loss coverage included
Cons
- Some customers report that the online insurance application isn’t smooth
HPSO Insurance
HPSO stands for Healthcare Providers Service Organization. The company is a subsidiary of AON. HPSO has a wide range of coverage options for pharmacists, including professional liability insurance and license protection insurance.
Average cost: $72 per month
Our rating: 8/10
Pros
- Also sells pharmacy technician liability insurance with a $3 million aggregate limit
- Range of coverage options
- HIPAA coverage
Cons
- Malpractice insurance doesn’t come with cyber liability floater
