Report: Malpractice litigation isn't driving higher healthcare costs

Medical malpractice has been singled out by many as the top culprit for rising healthcare costs. However, medical malpractice payments made on behalf of physicians hit a record low in 2012, a Public Citizen Foundation report has found. In the report, “No Correlation: Continued Decrease in Medical Malpractice Payments Debunks Theory That Litigation Is to Blame for Soaring Medical Costs,” researchers analyzed data from the National Practitioner Data Bank.

The number of malpractice payments on behalf of physicians (9,379) was the lowest on record in 2012, and fell for the ninth consecutive year, the report stated. The value of these payments—$3.1 billion—was the lowest on record if adjusted for inflation. In unadjusted dollars, payments fell for the ninth straight year and were at their lowest level since 1998. Medical malpractice payments’ share of the nation’s healthcare bill was the lowest on record, falling to about 0.11% of national healthcare costs, according to the report.

Source: Public Citizen Foundation