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Government Relations

Politics Are Key Factor in Policy Progress

As we approach the culmination of the biannual event known as “the most important election of our lifetime,” it is an opportune moment to assess what this election has in store with regard to the medical professional liability community.

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MPL Insurance Sector Report: 2024 Financial Results

Available on-demand: Insights and observations from experts on the MPL industry’s 2024 financial performance and what to expect in the MPL sector in 2025.

News

The MPL Association Elects Board Chair and Appoints Officers

J. Michael Conerly, MD, FACS, MBA, President and Chief Executive Officer of LAMMICO, has been selected to serve as the Association’s Chair of the Board of Directors.

IMPACT OF CAPS ON MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY CLAIMS
This quarter, our infographic shifts from reporting data from the MPL Association Data Sharing Project to spotlighting insights from the article, “An Analysis on How Caps on Medical Malpractice Claims Have Restrained Claim Values by State.” Featured in the 2024 Aon/ASHRM Hospital and Physician Professional Liability Benchmark report, the article uses physician data from the National Practitioner Data Bank to examine how caps on noneconomic damages influence average claim costs. The authors* found that lower caps effectively control claim costs, while higher caps often have a smaller/lesser impact. This infographic displays key findings, emphasizing the critical role of cap limits in medical professional liability.

 

3.4% Annual increase in average claims payments countrywide from 1990 to 2023

 

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  • A decade ago, average claim amounts were materially lower. Since then, small cap states have remained at 56% relative to the no cap states’ average, while large cap states increased from 74% to 81% of the no cap average.
  • This suggests that caps not only make a difference in the costs of claims, but also that the amount of the cap is material to these costs.

 

 

KEY FINDINGS

  • Caps on damages appear to have a favorable impact on average claim costs, especially in states with small caps and few exceptions.
  • States with small caps (≤ $500,000) consistently show lower average claim costs compared to states without caps.
  • As caps increase in size and exceptions are introduced, the effectiveness of caps in controlling claim costs diminishes.
  • Average claim costs in states with large caps (> $500,000) tend to be closer to those in states without caps.

 

*Article authors are Bill Burns, Kwon Miller, and Mike Stinson of the MPL Association

 

Contact for more information:
Kwon Miller, Research and Analytics Manager kmiller@MPLassociation.org