Rates and characteristics of paid malpractice claims among US physicians by specialty, 1992–2014.

Adam Schaffer; Anupam B. Jena; Seth A. Seabury; Harnam Singh; Venkat Chalasani; Allen Kachalia

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Rates and characteristics of paid malpractice claims among US physicians by specialty, 1992–2014.

April 19, 2017

Schaffer A, Jena AB, Seabury SA, et al. JAMA Intern Med. 2017;177(5):710-718.

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This retrospective study of a claims database found that medical malpractice claims declined significantly between 1992 and 2014, but mean payment amounts increased at the same time. Diagnostic error was the overall most common reason for a claim, affirming the importance of improving diagnosis.

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