Public Citizen Med Mal Study

Public Citizen today released a study showing that medical malpractice litigation is not the cause of the health care "crisis."

Despite claims by business and medical lobbying interests and the Bush administration, there is no medical malpractice lawsuit crisis in America, according to analysis released today by Public Citizen. The new report, “The Great Medical Malpractice Hoax,” dispels oft-repeated myths of dwindling doctors and spiraling insurance premiums used to support limits on the ability of injured patients to seek redress in the courts.

The real problems are a lack of attention to patient safety, the high incidence of preventable medical error and the lack of accountability for a small set of doctors who account for a majority of medical malpractice payments, the report reveals. The report also presents several recommendations for Congress, state governments and hospitals to reduce health care costs and save lives.

Press release, Jan. 10, 2007. The study was based on an analysis of medical malpractice awards from the federal National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB), 1990-2005.

The Great Medical Malpractice Hoax: NPDB Data Continue to Show Medical Liability System Produces Rational Outcomes (Jan. 2007) (25 pp.) is here.