APCAPITAL LOSES $76 MILLION IN 2004:

East Lansing, Mich.-based medical liability insurer American Physicians Capital Inc. announced net income of $102,000, or 1 cent per share for the fourth quarter of 2003. For the year, the company reported a net loss of $76.8 million, or $9.02 per share. This compares to a net loss of $1.2 million, or 14 cents per share, for the 2002 fourth quarter, and a net loss of $18.5 million, or $1.98 per share, in 2002. Net premiums earned were down $708,000 in the fourth quarter of 2003, or 1.7 percent, compared to the fourth quarter of 2002. For 2003, net premiums earned were up $10.1 million, or 6.8 percent, from 2002. The company blamed the decrease in fourth-quarter premiums on its exit from the Florida market. The premium increase for the full year is the result of the company’s rate increases in late 2002 and throughout 2003. The insured physician count has decreased 11.9 percent from 2002, the company said, due to its exit from Florida, discontinuance of Ohio and Kentucky occurrence-based policies, and elimination of poor risks in other markets.