New law requires dentists to carry malpractice insurance [Reading Eagle, Pa.]

July 02--About 18 months after a series in the Reading Eagle exposed the fact that dentists in Pennsylvania are not required to carry malpractice insurance, Gov. Tom Corbett on June 22 signed a law to change that.

The law, which takes effect 60 days from the signing, was passed unanimously by the state House and Senate. It was one of the last issues championed by the late state Sen. Michael A. O'Pake, a Reading Democrat.

"I definitely believe dentists should be required to carry malpractice liability insurance," O'Pake said at the time after the newspaper contacted him and told him about a number of patients who had been injured by a Wyomissing dentist who had no insurance, Dr. Gregory Pedro of the former Fine Arts Dental.

Kirsten Page, deputy director of communications in the governor's office, said the legislation is a victory for consumers.

"It ensures all dentists practicing in Pennsylvania have the proper insurance coverage," she said.

State Sen. Pat Vance, a Republican who represents Cumberland and York counties, introduced the bill in the summer of 2011.

"A reporter from Berks County contacted me about a case of apparent gross malpractice where a dentist had no malpractice insurance," Vance said. "I was surprised to learn that dentists were not required to carry malpractice insurance, unlike physicians, physician assistants, certified nurse midwives and other health care professionals. This change in requirement could help compensate a patient who experiences dental injury."

During hearings in the state House, experts estimated that up to 5 percent of Pennsylvania dentists had no liability insurance.

Katie True, commissioner of the state Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs who also serves on the state dental board, supported the bill and said Pennsylvania now is one of just 10 states requiring malpractice insurance for dentists.

The American Dental Association had no comment.

Dr. Valerie S. Deiber, a Wyomissing dentist and president of the Berks County Dental Society, said the group has no official position on the subject. She added that the purpose of malpractice insurance is to protect the dentist from financial loss and not for patients' financial gain.

Dr. Kalmen A. Feinberg, an Exeter Township physician, and his wife, Margaret, were the driving force behind the change, researching the issue and pressing legislators.

Margaret Feinberg said she suffered permanent damage after two years of painful surgeries and $87,000 paid to Pedro, whom she first saw after he was recommended to her as a board certified prosthodontist in 2005.

It turned out that Pedro was not board certified and the state dental board is in the process of revoking his license. Numerous lawsuits against him in Berks and other counties are still winding through the courts. He has filed for bankruptcy and recently told a judge that he is broke and sleeping in his car.

"I did this to protect other patients," Margaret Feinberg said. "I'm glad that it's passed. I'm just one patient who struggled on behalf of all the other patients out there."

Contact Jason A. Kahl: 610-371-5024 or [email protected].

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