Malpractice litigation and medical costs in the United States

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship of medical malpractice litigation and medical costs in the United States. We relate medical malpractice settlements to medical costs for 190 metro and non-metro areas in the United States over a 5-year period and find that litigation is positively and significantly related to medical costs. Using a panel data set and a fixed-effects specification, the estimates indicate that malpractice litigation accounts for roughly 2-10% of medical expenditures, with the impact exceeding the dollar amount of settlements.