A bill for an act relating to the duties of insurers under medical malpractice insurance policies.

HF 219 requires health insurance companies covering medical malpractice claims to negotiate settlement offers within policy limits in good faith. If an insurer refuses a claimant's settlement offer at or below the policy limit and the case results in a judgment exceeding that limit, the insurer must pay the full judgment amount. This directly affects health care providers (insureds) and their insurers, giving providers a legal claim against insurers for failing to negotiate within policy limits. The bill shifts liability to insurers for excess judgments when they unreasonably reject reasonable settlement offers.