Kansas (KS)
Medical Professional Liability Insurance in Kansas
The Kansas Supreme Court struck down the state's noneconomic damages cap in Hilburn v. Enerpipe in 2019 as a violation of the right to jury trial, so verdict exposure is no longer bounded by that ceiling. The Kansas State Board of Healing Arts handles licensure separately, and either party may request a nonbinding screening panel before trial.
Kansas at a glance
- Damages-cap posture
- Noneconomic cap struck down in Hilburn v. Enerpipe (2019)
- Presuit option
- Optional nonbinding screening panel before trial
- Limitations period
- Generally two years from discovery, with a four-year statute of repose
- Licensing board
- Kansas State Board of Healing Arts
The Kansas Supreme Court found the prior cap violated the right to jury trial; confirm current status with counsel.
Either party may request the panel; it is not a mandatory gatekeeper.
K.S.A. 60-513 sets the outer limit from the act causing injury.
Handles licensure and discipline separately from civil liability exposure.
Hilburn ended the noneconomic damages cap
Kansas had capped noneconomic malpractice damages for decades, but the state Supreme Court's 2019 Hilburn v. Enerpipe decision held that cap unconstitutional as applied to personal-injury claims, reversing course from an earlier ruling that had upheld it. Wichita and Kansas City-area hospital systems generally now size primary and excess limits without relying on that former statutory ceiling.
A screening panel can precede trial
Kansas law allows either party to request a nonbinding medical malpractice screening panel that reviews the case and issues an opinion before trial, though the process is optional rather than a mandatory gatekeeper like some neighboring states use. Insureds should coordinate with defense counsel early on whether requesting a panel makes strategic sense for a given claim.
Two-year filing window, four-year outer limit
K.S.A. 60-513 generally gives a patient two years from when the injury was or should have been discovered to sue, subject to a four-year statute of repose from the act that caused the injury. Because rural Kansas practices often refer patients across long distances, tracking where and when care occurred matters for pinning down the applicable filing deadline.
Licensure discipline runs through the Board of Healing Arts
The Kansas State Board of Healing Arts investigates complaints and disciplines physicians and other licensees on a schedule independent of any screening panel opinion or civil verdict. A malpractice policy's defense obligation typically covers only the civil suit, so a practice facing board scrutiny should confirm whether separate coverage applies.
Who we write this for in Kansas
Medical malpractice FAQs for Kansas
Medical liability law changes frequently through legislation and court rulings. Confirm current limits, deadlines, and requirements with a licensed agent or counsel before relying on them.
General guidance, not legal advice. Kansas requirements change and apply differently by entity type, class code and contract. Confirm current rules with the Kansas Insurance Department or talk with a licensed US Professional Insure agent.
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