W. Va. Code R. § 115-7-3 - Definitions

3.1. For purposes of this rule, the following words or terms shall have the same meanings as set forth in W. Va. Code § 55-7B-2: "collateral source", "emergency condition", "health care", "health care facility", "health care provider", "medical injury", "medical professional liability", "medical professional liability insurance", "non-economic loss", "patient", "plaintiff" and "representative".

3.2. "Act" means W. Va. Code § 29-12D-1 et seq.,W. Va. Code establishing the patient injury compensation fund.

3.3. "Actuarially sound" means funding sufficient to pay those claims for economic damages and all administrative or operational costs of the fund which are known or which are projected from analyses of claims, loss experience and other relevant factors.

3.4. "Agency" means the state board of risk and insurance management.

3.5. "Applicable Insurance" means all insurance available to provide indemnity coverage for all tortfeasors pursued in the underlying medical malpractice claim._

3.6. "Application for compensation" means the written request to the fund for payment of economic damages.

3.7. "Board" means the governing body of the state board of risk and insurance management as provided in W. Va. Code § 29-12-3.

3.8. "Claimant" means the person submitting an application for compensation to the fund.

3.9. "Code" means the Code of West Virginia of 1931, as amended.

3.10. "Director" means the executive director of the state board of risk and insurance management.

3.11. "Economic damages" means those special damages which are reduced to an actual dollar amount that can be presented to a jury in an action brought under the medical professional liability act to compensate a plaintiff for the monetary costs of a medical injury, such as lost earnings, past and future medical care and rehabilitation services. Economic damages do not include non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering, or hedonic damages, court costs, post-judgment interest, attorneys' fees, extra-contractual damages, or punitive damages.

3.12. "Fund" means the West Virginia Patient Injury Compensation Fund created by W. Va. Code § 29-12D-1(a).

3.13. "Medical professional liability act" means the provisions of Article 7B, Chapter 55 of the Code.

3.14. "Occurrence" means any act, series of acts, failure to act, or series of failures to act arising out of the rendering or failure to render medical professional services to any person within West Virginia by a health care provider resulting in a medical injury or injuries.

3.15. "Qualified claimant" means a claimant that is both a "patient" and a "plaintiff" as those terms are defined in the medical professional liability insurance act.

3.16. "Statutory limitations on the recovery of economic damages" means the limitations on recovery of economic damages in a medical malpractice action due to negligent treatment of emergency conditions at a designated trauma care center pursuant to W. Va. Code § 55-7B-9c or by operation of the joint and several liability principles and standards set out in W. Va. Code § 55-7B-9.

3.17. "Uncollectible economic damages" means any portion of an economic damages award or settlement in a medical malpractice action that a qualified claimant is unable to collect from the defendant due to statutory limitations on recovery of economic damages.

3.18. "Year" or "fiscal year" means the twelve (12) consecutive month period beginning the first day of July and ending the last day of June.

Notes

W. Va. Code R. § 115-7-3