What CRICO does

CRICO is the medical professional liability (MPL) captive insurer and patient safety organization for the Harvard medical community, operating as a group of entities under The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions Incorporated (a Massachusetts Chapter 180 corporation), including Controlled Risk Insurance Company of Vermont, Inc. (a Risk Retention Group) and Controlled Risk Insurance Company, Ltd. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Boston with 101–250 employees, CRICO provides MPL insurance coverage, defendant support, risk assessments, and patient safety education to physicians, nurses, and advanced practice providers employed by Harvard-affiliated member institutions, including Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Mass Eye and Ear, Lahey, Cooley Dickinson, Newton-Wellesley, and a broader network of community hospitals.

The company's core technology platform is Candello, a national medical malpractice database that pools case data from captive and commercial professional liability insurers and represents approximately 30% of all U.S. MPL cases. Candello is operationalized through proprietary analytics tools — the Comparative Benchmarking System (CBS) for risk benchmarking and the Advance Report Writer (ARW) for custom reporting — and feeds clinical risk intelligence products, peer-reviewed research, and the federally recognized Academic Medical Center Patient Safety Organization (AMC PSO), which provides a protected collaborative environment under Patient Safety Act privilege. CRICO also publishes case studies, guidelines and algorithms, CME programs, Risk Management Study Bundles, the Ambulatory Safety Nets program for outpatient follow-up, and two podcast series (MedMal Insider and Safety Net).

Revenue is generated primarily through recurring insurance premiums from Harvard-affiliated member institutions (subscription model) supplemented by professional services revenue from patient safety education, CME offerings, claim history processing fees ($30 per request for former insureds), and Candello benchmarking services sold to external insurers. Distribution is via direct institutional relationships with member organizations, a self-service portal for insured clinicians, and the AMC PSO for collaborative patient safety work. Candello extends the addressable market beyond Harvard to commercial MPL insurers nationwide. CRICO has no external equity funding and is structurally a mutual organization controlled by and serving its Harvard member institutions.

Name

CRICO

Legal name

The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions Incorporated

Website

https://rmf.harvard.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1976

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

CRICO is the captive medical professional liability insurer and patient safety organization serving the Harvard medical community, providing MPL coverage, defendant support, and risk management services to physicians, nurses, and APPs across Harvard-affiliated member institutions, powered by the Candello national malpractice database.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Medical Professional Liability Insurance: CRICO provides medical malpractice insurance coverage to physicians, nurses, and advanced practice providers employed by member organizations. Revenue is generated through insurance premiums from its member subscribers.
2. Claims History and Document Processing: CRICO's Underwriting department processes claim history requests and proof of insurance documents. There is a $30 processing fee for claim history requests for those no longer insured by CRICO.
3. Patient Safety Services and Education: CRICO provides CME opportunities, risk management study bundles, and patient safety educational offerings to member organizations, funded through membership premiums.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

CRICO provides medical professional liability (malpractice) insurance coverage to physicians, nurses, and advanced practice providers employed by Harvard-affiliated healthcare institutions, along with defendant support when claims arise. The organization also runs the Candello national medical malpractice database and analytics platform, the AMC PSO collaborative for patient safety research, risk assessments, Ambulatory Safety Nets programs, CME/risk management education, and clinical case study resources for the Harvard medical community.

Product overview

CRICO is a medical professional liability insurance and patient safety organization serving the Harvard medical community. The organization operates as a platform offering multiple interconnected products and services, including: its core Candello national malpractice database and analytics platform (powered by the Comparative Benchmarking System and Advance Report Writer tools); the AMC PSO for protected patient safety analysis and guideline development; insurance coverage and defendant support services; patient safety resources including clinical case studies, podcasts, and CME education; Ambulatory Safety Nets for outpatient follow-up; and Risk Assessment services. The portfolio is held together by its data infrastructure and shared focus on reducing malpractice risk and improving patient safety outcomes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Candello: A division of CRICO that pools medical malpractice data and expertise from captive and commercial professional liability insurers, providing clinical risk intelligence products and solutions.
• AMC PSO

Products and services

• Candello A national medical malpractice database and clinical risk intelligence platform that pools case data from captive and commercial professional liability insurers across the United States (covering approximately 30% of all U.S. medical professional liability cases). Subscribers receive benchmarking reports, peer-reviewed research access, and analytics products for clinical risk decision-making.
• AMC PSO (Academic Medical Center Patient Safety Organization) A federally recognized Patient Safety Organization that convenes academic medical centers to collect, analyze, and report patient safety data, exchange learnings, and develop patient safety guidelines under federal Patient Safety Act privilege protections.
• Medical Professional Liability Insurance (CRICO coverage) Medical malpractice liability coverage provided through institutional subscriptions to Harvard-affiliated physicians (including staff, fellows, and residents), nurses, and advanced practice providers employed by CRICO member organizations. Coverage is bundled with access to the My CRICO portal for confirmation of coverage, proof of insurance, and policy information.
• Defendant Support Services Legal support, guidance, and resources provided to insured healthcare providers named in malpractice claims, walking them through the claims process and what to expect.
• Risk Assessments Comprehensive clinical risk assessment services for member organizations, including safety culture assessments for mergers and acquisitions. Delivered as an engagement with CRICO risk experts to identify organizational vulnerabilities.
• Ambulatory Safety Nets High-reliability, person-centered programs designed to ensure follow-up on abnormal test results and close communication loops for patients in outpatient/ambulatory settings.
• Risk Management Study Bundles Prepackaged educational content sets designed to satisfy CME credit and Massachusetts risk management study requirements for insured clinicians.

Quantifiable outcome

• 44% of primary care cases allege a diagnostic failure
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and member.

• TDC Group (The Doctors Company)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2022TDC Group collaborated with CRICO and Candello to produce the 'What Not to Do: Telehealth Lessons Learned' video series addressing telehealth risks and patient safety. TDC Group is a leading provider of medical professional liability insurance and risk and patient safety services.
• Candello (Division of CRICO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCandello is a division of The Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions Incorporated that pools medical malpractice data and expertise from captive and commercial professional liability insurers across the country to provide clinical risk intelligence products and solutions.
• Cooley Dickinson HospitalmemberStrategic or Co-development PartnerCRICO member organization; Jennifer Vuu Sanchez serves as patient safety liaison.
• Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH)memberStrategic or Co-development PartnerCRICO member organization; Jennifer Vuu Sanchez serves as patient safety liaison. MGH clinicians collaborated on AMC PSO Virtual Care Task Force.
• Mass Eye and EarmemberStrategic or Co-development PartnerCRICO member organization; Jennifer Vuu Sanchez serves as patient safety liaison.
• Martha's Vineyard HospitalmemberStrategic or Co-development PartnerCRICO member organization; Jennifer Vuu Sanchez serves as patient safety liaison.
• Nantucket Cottage HospitalmemberStrategic or Co-development PartnerCRICO member organization; Jennifer Vuu Sanchez serves as patient safety liaison.
• Salem HospitalmemberStrategic or Co-development PartnerCRICO member organization; Jennifer Vuu Sanchez serves as patient safety liaison.
• Pentucket MedicalmemberStrategic or Co-development PartnerCRICO member organization; Jennifer Vuu Sanchez serves as patient safety liaison.
• Wentworth Douglass HospitalmemberStrategic or Co-development PartnerCRICO member organization; Jennifer Vuu Sanchez serves as patient safety liaison.
• Beth Israel Deaconess Medical CentermemberStrategic or Co-development PartnerCRICO member institution that collaborated on multiple research studies including emergency department malpractice case characterization and merger/acquisition safety culture assessments.
• Brigham and Women's HospitalmemberStrategic or Co-development PartnerCRICO member institution where Dr. Adam Schaffer practices as a hospitalist; collaborated on radiation oncology malpractice research.
• Lahey Hospital and Medical CentermemberStrategic or Co-development PartnerCRICO member institution; collaborated with CRICO experts on medical oncologist malpractice claims analysis.
• Academic Medical Centers PSO (AMC PSO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAMC PSO is a Patient Safety Organization convened by CRICO that enables member institutions to collect, analyze, and report patient safety data under federal privilege protections, and exchange learnings to improve patient safety and quality of care.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cricotweet
• Facebookfacebook.com/CRICOcommunity

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CRICO