Law Firm of Clark Newhall MD JD

The following list has national statistics on medical malpractice in the United States. If you need more information on Medical malpractice, Contact Us today.

Over 100,000 Die Each Year

According to an article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), over 100,000 people die each year due to medical malpractice and nearly half of these are from emergency room errors. Medical malpractice has become the third leading cause of death in the United States, after deaths from heart disease and cancer.

Only One in Eight

Only one malpractice claim is made for every eight medical malpractice injuries and plaintiffs drop 10 times more claims than they pursue. Also, only one in eight preventable medical errors committed in New York hospitals results in a malpractice claim according to a 1990 Harvard Study.

Only 17% of Doctors Disciplined

Medical malpractice statistics show that less than half of 17% of the nation's doctors face any serious state sanctions each year. By the time a physician has paid four awards, he or she stands only a 15 percent chance of being sanctioned. Approximately 2,500 serious disciplinary actions a year are taken against healthcare providers for medical malpractice.

5% of U.S. Doctors are Responsible

Just 5 percent of U.S. doctors are responsible for 54 percent of all malpractice. Source: National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB)

Death and Permanent Injuries

Plaintiffs claiming malpractice who had suffered death or permanent injury made up 90% of medical malpractice trials in 75 of the largest counties in the US 2001 (Bureau of Justice Statistics)

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