Medical Malpractice in Your State limiting patients' rights does not improve care or lower insurance rates
Reality Check | Victims
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North Dakota
According to the American Medical Association, North Dakota is showing
"problem signs" and on its way to becoming a "crisis"
state.
Reality Check:
North Dakota already caps noneconomic and punitive damages.
Victims of Medical Malpractice
In Grand Forks County, a newborn baby girl lost her life because
of medical malpractice. While the infant showed signs of distress
prior to birth, doctors failed to order an emergency caesarean. Following
delivery, tests showed she needed oxygen, but they failed to administer
it for 5 hours. The baby girl was then given an overdose of Phenobarbital,
over three times the required amount, and suffered severe brain damage.
She was sent home where she had to be fed through a nasal tube. She
died two months later.
Source: Kempf v. University of North Dakota Family Practice Center,
1988 WL 367079 (N.D.Dist.)
Number of Personal Injury Lawsuits
There is no litigation explosion. The National Center for State Courts
Recently reported that:
- Tort filings have declined by 5% since 1993. Contract filings,
meanwhile, which are more likely to involve businesses than tort
cases, rose by 21% over the same period.1
- Automobile tort filings, which make up the majority of all tort
claims, have fallen by 5% by 1993 and 14% since their high in 1996.1
- Medical malpractice filings per 100,000 population have fallen
1% since 1998.2
- In 22 of the 30 states that NCSC examined population-adjusted
tort findings declined from 1992 to 2001. The average change in
tort filings across all 30 states was a 15% decrease.1
Sources:
- Examining the Work of State Courts, 2003, National Center for
State Courts (NCSC) 2004
- Medical Malpractice Filings per 100,000 Population in 11 and
17 States, 1993-2002, National Center for State Courts, 2004 (unpublished,
on file with author)
Updated February 2005
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