Mike Murphy on Why He Came to HSG — and What Makes It Different
For more than three decades, Mike Murphy built a respected legal career defending physicians and hospitals across Missouri courtrooms. He worked alongside healthcare providers through some of the most difficult moments of their professional lives — high-stakes litigation, reputational risk, regulatory scrutiny, and emotionally charged claims.
Then, in mid-2024, Murphy made a move that surprised many colleagues: he left private practice to join Healthcare Services Group (HSG).
Why?
According to Murphy, the answer is simple.
“There was only one insurance carrier that could have convinced me to walk away from a successful practice,” he said. “Only one.”
In this conversation, Murphy shares what made HSG stand apart after decades of working with insurers across the industry — and why he believes HSG’s approach to defending healthcare providers is fundamentally different.
Q&A with Michael Murphy
Q: You spent more than 30 years defending hospitals and physicians. What ultimately led you to join HSG?
Murphy: I’ll start with this — I’m biased now, no question. But that bias comes from experience.
Over the course of my career, I worked with dozens of insurance carriers while defending hospitals and physicians throughout Missouri and even in Arkansas. I saw how claims were handled. I saw how insureds were treated. And I saw what happened when cases became difficult or expensive.
HSG was always different.
That difference became impossible to ignore over time. Eventually, I realized this was the only organization I would leave private practice to join.
Q: What specifically made HSG stand apart from other carriers?
Murphy: First and foremost, HSG understands what’s truly at stake in a healthcare liability claim.
For physicians and hospitals, this isn’t just about dollars and cents. It’s about professional reputations, licenses, careers, and relationships built over decades.
A lot of carriers say they support their insureds. But HSG walks that talk.
At HSG, the philosophy is different. The focus is on protecting healthcare providers and giving them the defense they deserve without any of that external “noise.”
Q: You’ve spoken before about the importance of local expertise in claims handling. Why does that matter so much?
Murphy: Because local matters.
You don’t want someone sitting in New York or California making decisions about a Missouri case without understanding Missouri juries, Missouri venues, or Missouri law.
Healthcare litigation is incredibly nuanced. Every jurisdiction is different. Every venue has its own dynamics.
HSG understands that. There’s informed judgment behind the decisions being made. That matters enormously when providers are facing serious allegations.
Q: You also referenced frustrations you observed with other carriers over the years. What were some of the biggest concerns?
Murphy: One major issue was how defense counsel was treated.
I’ve seen situations where attorneys are trying to defend physicians or hospitals at the highest level, but they’re constantly distracted by arbitrary invoice cuts or administrative interference from people far removed from the actual case.
That’s not productive. And frankly, it’s not fair to the insured.
HSG empowers its defense attorneys to provide what I would call a state-of-the-art defense — not merely “a defense.” There’s a very important distinction there.
When providers are facing litigation, they deserve excellence.
Q: You’ve said HSG “leans in” before lawsuits are even filed. What does that look like in practice?
Murphy: It means being proactive.
Sometimes a physician or hospital is facing a deposition or receives a subpoena that raises legal or compliance concerns, but technically no lawsuit has been filed yet.
A lot of carriers will simply say, “We can’t help you because there’s no claim yet.”
That’s not how HSG operates.
If a deposition creates exposure concerns, HSG leans in. If a subpoena requires legal guidance, HSG assigns counsel. If an early resolution is in the provider’s best interest, HSG pursues it.
And when care needs to be defended through trial, HSG stands behind its insureds.
Q: Beyond claims handling, was there something about HSG’s culture that resonated with you personally?
Murphy: Absolutely.
HSG never loses sight of the human side of healthcare.
Behind every claim is a healthcare provider who trained for years and dedicated their life to serving patients. Behind every hospital claim is an organization serving its community.
There’s a tremendous amount of sacrifice and commitment wrapped up in those careers.
HSG understands that.
And I’ll say this too: HSG genuinely believes in “doing the next right thing,” even when that’s not the easiest path.
That’s difficult to explain unless you’ve seen it firsthand, but it’s real.
Q: Your family also has deep roots in medicine. Did that influence your perspective throughout your career?
Murphy: Without question.
My grandfather and two uncles were family practitioners in rural communities, and my father was a country radiologist.
So, for me, this has always been personal.
I’ve spent my entire career in the trenches with healthcare providers because I understand the work they do and the pressure they carry.
I have skin in this game.
Q: When healthcare leaders think about choosing a liability partner today, what do you hope they understand about HSG?
Murphy: I hope they understand that they’re not simply purchasing an insurance policy.
They’re choosing who will stand beside them during some of the hardest moments of their professional lives.
At HSG, providers are treated like partners — not claim numbers.
That difference becomes very clear when it matters most.
About Mike Murphy
Mike Murphy serves as Director of Claims at Healthcare Services Group. Before joining HSG in 2024, he spent more than 30 years defending physicians, hospitals, and healthcare organizations in complex medical liability matters.
Murphy brings decades of courtroom experience, healthcare litigation insight, and a deep personal connection to medicine through his family’s longstanding history of serving rural communities. His grandfather and two uncles were family practitioners, and his father was a rural radiologist.
Today, he helps lead HSG’s claims philosophy centered on proactive support, local expertise, and strong advocacy for healthcare providers.