Medical Malpractice Claim Statistics

Medical malpractice settlements are generally sought by patients who have been grievously harmed or injured by the negligent act or omission of a healthcare professional or healthcare facility; an unsatisfactory outcome is not enough to qualify as malpractice.

To be considered medical malpractice under the law, a medical malpractice claim must have all three of the following factors:

• A violation of the “standard of care”
• The negligence caused the injury
• The injury must have caused significant damages

Medical malpractice claims by type

Inpatients are patients who are admitted into a hospital for treatment. An outpatient is a person who receives medical care without being admitted into a hospital.

• The most common inpatient medical malpractice claims were for surgery errors (representing 34 percent of claims).
• The most common outpatient medical malpractice claims were for diagnostic errors (representing 46 percent of claims).

Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21673294

• Diagnostic errors are the most common and the most costly type of negligence that leads to medical malpractice claims, according to a study in BMJ Quality & Safety.
• Of the 100,249 claims analyzed, 28.6 percent were for diagnostic errors. They represented the highest proportion of total malpractice claim payments at 35.2 percent).
• Adjusted for inflation, diagnosis-related payouts were $38.8 billion over the 25-year period.

Because of the complexity of medical malpractice cases, it is typically in the injured party’s interest to hire an experienced medical malpractice attorney to fight for damages and justice on their behalf. He or she will build a winning case by, among other things, reviewing medical records, interviewing and retaining key witnesses.

Medical malpractice payment statistics

• Average compensation for all medical malpractice claims is $485,000 with an average payout of $363,000 for inpatient claims and $290,000 for outpatient claims
• According to Diederich Healthcare’s “2013 Medical Malpractice Payout Analysis,” inpatient cases accounted for 45 percent of malpractice payouts while outpatient cases accounted for 41 percent
• About 93 percent of medical malpractice cases are settled out of court during pre-trial litigation
• Of medical malpractice cases that ended in settlement-based resolutions, plaintiffs received payouts in 61 percent of cases
• Of the seven percent of medical malpractice cases that made it to court trials, plaintiffs received payouts in 21 percent of verdicts
• Medical malpractice payouts involving a jury/judgment are on average $799,000 compared to $462,000 for settlements

Source: http://www.medicalmalpractice.com/lander/national-medical-malpractice-facts

Time involved in medical malpractice settlements

The average person injured by medical negligence waits 16.5 months before filing a medical malpractice lawsuit. Once the suit is filed it takes an average of 27.5 months to reach a resolution, whether it is resolved by an out of court settlement or a trial with a jury verdict.

The Seattle personal injury attorneys at Morrow Kidman Tinker Macey-Cushman, PLLC have years of experience representing families harmed by medical malpractice. We seek justice for patients who have been harmed by preventable medical errors including birth injuries, hospital-acquired infections and wrongful death in Seattle and across Washington State. There are no fees or expenses to file a personal injury case as we only receive payment if we recover damages on your behalf. Do not delay; personal injury claims come with a Statute of Limitations, which means they must be filed within a certain time frame of the injury.

Call us now at (206) 752-4366 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation with one of our compassionate, experienced attorneys.