Doctors Company to acquire malpractice insurance firm

Utah Medical Insurance Association, a provider of liability insurance for physicians in three Intermountain states, and The Doctors Co., one of nation's largest insurers of physician and surgeon medical professional liability, have entered into a merger agreement.

The deal calls for The Doctors Co. to make the acquisition through its wholly owned subsidiary Underwriter for the Professions Insurance Co. Once complete, Underwriter will change its name to UMIA Insurance Co., a member of the TDC Group of Companies.

"We believe the partnership between UMIA and The Doctors Company will provide significant value to our physician policyholders," said Martin Oslowski, UMIA's president and CEO. "Both organizations share a common mission of providing outstanding service to our members, and this synergy was an important factor as we decided to enter into the agreement."

With the merger, The Doctors Co. will bring its number of physician policyholders to 76,000.

"We are pleased to announce this partnership between our two physician-owned companies," said Richard Anderson, chairman and CEO of The Doctors Co. "We look forward to welcoming UMIA's 3,000 policyholders to The Doctors Company group, where they will receive aggressive claims defense, unmatched legislative and patient safety advocacy, outstanding service, and industry-leading benefits. The combined organization will provide UMIA policyholders with the financial strength of a physician-owned insurer with multiple A ratings and a commitment to relentlessly defend, protect, and reward its members."

The transaction is expected to close before the end of the first quarter of 2013 and is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of regulatory approvals and approval by a majority of UMIA's subscribers.

UMIA is an Oregon reciprocal insurance company with its principal administrative offices in Salt Lake City. It serves policyholders in Utah, Montana and Wyoming,

The Doctors Co., founded in 1976, has approximately 73,000 members and $4 billion in assets.