Medical Malpractice Study Shows Doctors and Insurers Win Most Cases

By Christine Thomasos, Christian Post Reporter Friday, August 19, 2011

The most comprehensive study in 20 years concerning medical malpractice has recently been released, stating that most doctors will be sued and most patients will have little chance of receiving monetary compensation for their claims.

The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, took a look at 41,000 physicians between 1991 and 2005. According to the study, 7.5 percent of doctors have claims filed against them each year.

However, only two percent of patients receive monetary compensation from insurance companies. A. Paul Bogaty, New York medical malpractice attorney, has told The Christian Post about possible reasons for the lack of monetary compensation for individuals filing claims.

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“Malpractice cases are difficult to prove,” Bogaty said. “They involve long and complicated litigation.”

Although most doctors and insurers win lawsuits filed against them, Amaithabh Chandra, one of the authors of the studies, said they would prefer not to be involved.

"They hate having their name dragged through the local newspaper and having to go to court," Chadra said according to the Cleveland Leader.

The study was compiled by Anupam B. Jena, a resident at Massachusetts General Hospital, Seth Seabury, a RAND economist, Darius Lakdawalla, director of research at Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics at the University of Southern California and Chandra, an economist and professor of Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

In the study, the authors wrote that specific types of doctors had higher risks than others of losing malpractice suits.

"Our projections suggest that nearly all physicians in high-risk specialties will face at least one claim during their career; however, a substantial minority will not have to make an indemnity payment," the authors wrote. "For example, physicians in obstetrics and general surgery -- both fields that are regarded as high-risk specialties -- were substantially more likely to face a claim than pediatricians and pathologists, yet the average payments among pediatricians and pathologists were considerably greater."

Despite the data released in the study, Bogaty said any patient with a potential claim should seek advice.

“(People) should make sure to consult an attorney that handles those cases,” the medical malpractice attorney said.