Medical Malpractice Law in the United States


 

Publication Date: May 2005

Publisher: Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation

Author(s):

Research Area: Law and ethics

Type: Report

Coverage: United States

Abstract:

In recent years, medical malpractice law and insurance have become popular topics for debate in Washington, DC and around the country. This report provides an overview of the issues surrounding medical malpractice law, including the legal changes that states have made over the past thirty years in response to periodic concerns about rising medical malpractice costs; some newer proposals for changing medical malpractice law; and trend data for malpractice claims.

Medical Malpractice Law in the United States was prepared for the Foundation by Peter P. Budetti of the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center and Teresa M. Waters of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.