Living in New York, there’s a possibility that you’ll need medical care at some point in your life. One thing you might be worried about is the likelihood of medical malpractice. Fortunately, there is data that can help put your mind at ease.
Medical malpractice takes place in every state, but which states have the best medical care (or at least the lowest number of medical malpractice cases?) By looking at statistics, you can tell that some states are more likely to have physicians who face malpractice lawsuits than others. For example, Louisiana is the state with the most medical malpractice. There are around 44.1 cases per 100,000 residents with a total payout of $59 million.
Ohio, on the other hand, has 27.5 medical malpractice lawsuits per 100,000 and saw a 21.64 percent increase in cases between 2014 and 2015. The state’s total payout was $88.7 million. New York, just a few states away, has 19.3 cases per 100,000 residents but a total payout of $711.7 million. Hawaii has the fewest malpractice lawsuits per 100,000 residents with just 4.9 cases per 100,000. The total payout was $6.2 million and has seen a 48.96 percent decrease.
Why do the payouts differ so much?
Each state has its own rules for how much a person can receive in compensation for a medical malpractice claim. In states with malpractice caps, patients may be limited to less money even though their injuries are just as severe as those who are injured in other states and obtain higher compensation. Individuals who find they are facing a cap on compensation can look for other ways to obtain compensation through multiple channels with help from their attorneys.
Source: Becker’s Hospital Review, “A state-by-state breakdown of medical malpractice suits,” Laura Dyrda, accessed Sep. 15, 2017
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