FAQs on Changes to Professional Liability Protection Requirements
The CLPNM Board of Directors has approved a motion to change the professional liability protection requirements for members of Manitoba’s practical nursing profession.
The liability protection that will be required for Manitoba’s Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs) and Graduate Practical Nurses (GPNs) will be the professional liability protection made available by the Canadian Nurses Protective Society (CNPS) with a minimum limit of protection of five (5) Million dollars.
All GPNs and LPNs must have the status of CNPS beneficiary and be eligible for CNPS professional liability protection effective December 1, 2023. LPNs will register and pay for this protection during the next annual renewal period.
The other nursing professionals in Manitoba also have liability protection through CNPS and require the same minimum limit of protection. LPNs will have access to more support and a higher limit of protection through this program compared to what has been available to them in the past. This level liability protection is required in the context of the current risks faced by members of the profession in their practice.
Frequently Asked Questions
CNPS is a not-for-profit society that offers legal advice, risk-management services, risk management education, legal assistance, and professional liability protection related to nursing practice in Canada.
The CNPS is not an insurance company, but a legal support system created by nurses, for nurses. CNPS assistance is provided on a discretionary basis and all requests for legal assistance are considered on a case-by-case basis, taking account of your specific needs, and in some circumstances, the resources available to you from your employer or your union. This approach allows the CNPS to offer assistance in a broader range of circumstances in which legal support is appropriate to protect the public and the integrity of your nursing practice, including some of the unusual and unpredictable circumstances that can arise.
Information about CNPS can be found on their website at: www.cnps.ca
The CLPNM was required to review professional liability protection requirements in the context of its transition to the RHPA. As nursing practice, health systems, and patient populations have become more complex, a more comprehensive professional liability protection is required both in the interest of the nurse, and the public. A profession-specific liability protection provider, such as CNPS, is ideally positioned to monitor, advise and assist Manitoba LPNs in managing risks associated with the practice of nursing in Canada.
Manitoba’s Registered Nurses have benefited from profession-specific professional liability protection through the CNPS for decades. Manitoba’s Registered Psychiatric Nurses have been required to have access to CNPS professional liability protection since 2020 as well. With this change, all four nursing professions will have similar access to professional liability protection and legal resources.
CNPS beneficiaries are eligible for:
- Legal advice about professional obligations and professional liability issues
- Professional liability protection and assistance with legal proceedings* up to $10M per claim**
- Assistance with a range of other legal proceedings up to $1 million
- Risk management education to assist nurses in proactively addressing risks in their practice that could lead to liability claims
Assistance is made available by the CNPS on a case-by-case basis, taking account of your specific needs, and in some circumstances, the resources available to you from your employer or your union.
*Core Services discussed here do not extend to legal assistance with complaints made to the regulator. The CNPS Supplementary Protection program is available for those who wish to extend their eligibility for assistance to regulatory complaints at an added cost.
**Consult the CNPS website for details.
With the CNPS, professional liability protection will be offered through an organization well-positioned to counsel LPNs about the legal aspects and risks associated with nursing in Canada. Manitoba LPNs will have access to professional liability protection and legal assistance similar to that which is available to Manitoba’s other nursing professions (RNs, NPs, and RPNs).
LPNs will have access to a higher limit of professional liability protection as a beneficiary of the CNPS than under their current malpractice insurance policy.
Feature | CNPS | Existing Coverage |
Claim Limit (civil proceeding and risk management) | $10 million | $2 million |
In addition, CNPS liability protection is occurrence-based. The current coverage is claims-made. With an occurrence-based program, if a claim is made regarding an occurrence that took place when an LPN was practising and a CNPS beneficiary, the LPN will remain eligible to request CNPS assistance with the defence of that claim even if, at the time of the claim, they are no longer practising.
CNPS beneficiaries are also eligible for CNPS assistance with other types of legal proceedings arising from nursing practice., including criminal investigations, criminal prosecutions, Coroner’s investigations, human rights complaints and allegations of privacy breach. Please note that the CNPS will not pay fines and other penalties that are imposed further to an investigation, or as part of a sanction. For more information, please see https://cnps.ca/services/plp-core/ or contact the CNPS.
Nurses who are registered for CNPS Core Services (professional liability protection) are referred to CNPS beneficiaries.
More information about CNPS Core Services and Professional Liability Protection is available on the CNPS website
Note that the fees noted on the CNPS website are reflective of the costs for the registration year ending on November 30, 2023, as currently Manitoba LPNs can only become CNPS beneficiaries at the individual beneficiary rate. The fees for the 2023-2024 CLPNM registration year have yet to be confirmed. Preliminary estimated costs for Manitoba LPNs are outlined in the question “What will be the cost?”.
The CLPNM will be adding more information to these FAQs in the coming months. Please check back.
Costs are still estimated at this point in time.
The annual cost is expected to be in the range of $80 – 85 in the first year. This includes approximately $30 for a non-permanent retroactive protection fee. The retroactive protection fee is expected to be in place for the first few years, and then would be removed.
Confirmed costs will be posted to the CLPNM website once known.
The CLPNM operates to serve and protect the public interest. If LPNs are not adequately protected, the public does not have access to adequate recourse in the event of LPN malpractice. Section 25 of Licensed Practical Nurses Regulation states:
Every member shall obtain and maintain the minimum amount of liability protection that is prescribed by the board.
There is a similar provision in The Regulated Health Professions Act.
No. CNPS provides individual professional liability protection related to the practice of nursing. Additional business coverage is still required.
Your eligibility for CNPS professional liability protection will be confirmed between the CLPNM and CNPS at the time of your registration application or renewal.
The CLPNM will no longer be involved in the payment of liability protection on behalf of its registrants as part of an ongoing effort to limit its activities to regulatory functions that are carried out on behalf of the public.
Because coverage was limited, costs were quite low. The small portion of the CLPNM budget that was allocated to pay for insurance for its registrants will now offset what otherwise might have been a higher fee increase.
Like you, we have heard announcements suggesting this might be the case, but the CLPNM does not have a full understanding of how this program will operate or who will have access to it. We understand that any reimbursements under this program will be through the employer. Please check with your employer.
No. Section 25 of Licensed Practical Nurses Regulation states:
Every member shall obtain and maintain the minimum amount of liability protection that is prescribed by the board.
The proetction prescribed by the CLPNM Board of Directors is a requirement for registration.
Although it is required, the CLPNM hopes registrants will recognize the benefits of this level of protection.
Students are regulated by the CLPNM, but the CLPNM will not require SPNs to register for CNPS professional liability protection. Some of the reasons for this decision include:
- SPN practice is different and very limited. SPNs practise only as part of an education program and are always under supervision from another regulated nurse.
- Educational institutions have insurance.
- Facilities have insurance.
