Medical Malpractice Claims Declining, Says Insurer

Schaumburg, Illinois – Data collected from 1,600 hospitals in years 1997 through 2007 reveals that health care organizations’ medical malpractice claim frequency is slightly declining and severity is leveling off, according to a report released by Zurich, an leading insurer of hospitals and health care organizations in North America.

The fifth annual Zurich benchmarking report on claims trends in the healthcare industry shows that claims severity, or the average amount per claim, has stabilized over the past several years. The average annual rise over the past 11 years is four percent. Additionally, Zurich reports that teaching and children’s hospitals have higher claim severity than acute care community hospitals and outpatient facilities. Non-profit hospitals have the lowest severity; and among non-profits, faith-based institutions have the lowest severity of all.

The report is now available online and can be viewed here: http://bit.ly/ajsqJS