Countywide

San Diego County supervisors Tuesday agreed to subsidize insurance for 13 clinics that provide care to pregnant women.

Representatives of the clinics, which care for 1,200 pregnant, low-income women each year, had said their prenatal services faced elimination because of a threatened escalation in insurance rates.

The county involved itself in the issue Oct. 28 after insurance companies said it would cost $20,000 each for the 13 clinic sites to be insured against malpractice.

After negotiations, however, Doctors Insurance Co. agreed to insure all 13 clinics for a total of $25,000 and the board Tuesday agreed to pay that amount for one year, at the same time granting $10,000 to the San Diego Assn. of Community Clinics to help develop a self-insurance program statewide.