Doctors and Insurance Companies love to tell of the medical malpractice lawsuit explosion, where, they blame lawyers for the insurance premium woes. Here are some facts.
In Pennsylvania, physicians must carry $500,000 in coverage with another $500,000 coverage being provided by MCARE, a state run program.
Of the 23 plaintiff verdicts statewide in 2009, 11 verdicts were $500,000 or less, no verdicts were between $500,000 and 1 million, 11 were between 1 million and 5 million, one was between 5 million and 10 million and none were over 10 million. Of the 154 medical malpractice lawsuits that went to a jury trial in 2009, 85 % were for the defendant.
These statistics make it clear, that doctors are not on the short end of the malpractice crisis. The injured victims are the ones being short changed. Laws, as well as general perception of medical malpractice claims make it very difficult for patients injured due to negligent medical treatment to get compensation to which they are entitled.
1. These statistics were reported in The Legal Intellignecer on 4-21-10
