Reasons Why You Need a Medical Malpractice Attorney

08 Jul Reasons Why You Need a Medical Malpractice Attorney

According to a report titled “The 0.6 Percent Bogeyman”, for the third straight year medical malpractice payments are at record lows. This reduction in payments is caused not by improved health care and safety but by a smaller amount of injured patients receiving compensation. In 2008, malpractice payments were 30.7% lower than the average payment in previous years.

According to the report, between 1991 and 2003 the number of payments per million people ranged between 51 and 59. However this number has been significantly reduced in 2008 to 36 payments per million people. Compounded with the increasing number of doctors each year, the ratio of payments to physicians illustrates an even lower number than historically recorded.

Nearly 80% of payments involved patients suffering from significant or major permanent injury from medical malpractice. This leaves a small percentage of malpractice payments for patients who suffered minor injuries, yet were still injured by their doctor. There are many more cases involving injured patients who are not even granted the opportunity to try their case in court. Experts conclude that a larger number of patients that suffer injuries do not take legal action and sue.

A different report published in 1999, titled “To Err is Human,” concludes that between 44,000 and 98,000 patients die each year because of avoidable errors. The report continues in illustrating that fewer than 15,000 people received medical malpractice payments in 1999. Combining these facts, we can conclude three to seven times as many patients died in 1999 because of medical errors than received medical payments. This discrepancy must have been greater in 2008 when the number of malpractice payments was reduced by 26%.

The estimated total health care costs for the U.S. in 2006 were $2.1 trillion of which only $3.9 billion, or 0.6%, corresponds to malpractice payments. The amount corresponding to the malpractice payments in 2008 is a lower amount at $3.6 billion. Such a small percentage disproves the notion that malpractice payments are such a burden on the United States healthcare system. According to the bogeyman report, actual medical malpractice payments have dropped to below 0.2% of total United States healthcare costs which is the lowest amount ever recorded.

With the number of medical malpractice payments decreasing, it is important for injured patients to seek out expert legal help. Medical malpractice lawyers are experts in getting payments for their clients, something which is increasingly more difficult to achieve.