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++++++++++++++++++ + + ++++++++++++++++++ DATA VAULT +++ +++ Medical Malpractice by THE NUMB3R5 ACCORDING TO THE KAISER FAMILY FOUNDATION, THERE WERE 9,894 MEDICAL MALPRACTICE CLAIMS IN THE UNITED STATES FOR 2010 FOR A TOTAL OF $3,328,708,700. A RECENT STUDY PUBLISHED IN THE NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE REPORTS THAT EVERY YEAR 7.4% OF ALL AMERICAN PHYSICIANS ENCOUNTER A CLAIM. THE STUDY FURTHER ILLUMINATES WHICH FIELDS OF SPECIALIZED MEDICINE WERE HARDER HIT BY THE INCREASING NUMBER OF MALPRACTICE PETITIONS. teaching and consulting economists from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, the University of Southern California and the RAND Corporation, surveyed malpractice data of 40,916 physicians, all of whom were insured by a national liability fi rm, over a 14-year period between 1991 and 2005. The investigators discovered a clear delinea- tion between 25 specialities examined based on those experiencing the highest rate of claims annually, including: + 19.1% of neurosurgeons T + 18.9% of thoracic-cardiovascular surgeons + 15.3% of general surgeons Those specialities experiencing the lowest rates of claims annually included: + 2.6% of psychiatrists + 3.1% of pediatricians + 5.2% of family medi- cine physicians HE STUDY, CONDUCTED by an internal medicine physician practicing at Massachusetts General Hospital and a group of As an overall risk level evaluation, the study estimated that 75% of physicians practicing in the lesser-impacted speci- alities would be challenged by a malpractice claim by age 65, while 99% of physicians practicing in the higher- impacted specialities would have a claim brought against them by the same age. Measuring the Dollar Effect Despite the high percentages of physicians experiencing malpractice claims, the study found that only 1.6% resulted in payment. Though the dollar amount for each specialty varied, investigators gathered a comprehensive picture of the payments over the last two decades, including: + Mean recompense equaled $274,887. + Median recompense equa led $111,749. + Low-end mean payment equaled $117,832 in dermatology. + High-end mean payment equaled $520,923 in pediatrics. In addition, as well as tracking the dollar amounts paid out by state, the Kaiser Family Foundation also ranked states by the number of claims filed. According to the data for 2010, the highest positioned states included: + New York with 1,373 petitions + California with 909 petitions + Florida with 838 petitions Lowest positioned states included: + South Dakota with 8 peti- tions + North Dakota with 14 petitions + Idaho with 16 petitions ■ 22 | Long Island MD NEWS ■ MDNEWS.COM

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