Medical Negligence Myth 3: Doctors are Fleeing

This report is one of a series from the American Association for Justice dispelling commonly believed myths about medical negligence.   It can be found at: www.justice.org/medicalnegligence

MYTH 3: DOCTORS ARE FLEEING

The number of practicing physicians in the United States has been growing steadily for decades. In 2007, the most recent year for which data are available, there were 941,304 physicians in the U.S., nearly 20,000 more than the year before.14

Not only are there more doctors, but the number of doctors is increasing faster than population growth. In 2007, the number of physicians per 100,000 population is at an all-time high of 307. The increase of physician numbers compared to population growthclimbed steadily for decades. There are now twice as many physicians per 100,000 population as there were when the American Medical Association began tracking figures in the 1960s.

Despite the cries of physicians fleeing multiplestates, the number of physicians increased in every state. In addition, in the vast majostates the increase in physicians either matched or outpaced population growth. The only exceptions were four states with medical malpractice caps: Alaska, Georgia, Montana and Utah.

Capping noneconomic damages does not ha state attract or maintain physicians. The number of physicians per 100,000 population is significantly higher in states WITHOUT caps than in states that cap damages (319 v. 283).

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14 All figures were derived from the American Medical Association’s own numbers (Physician Characteristics and Distribution in the U.S., Various Editions).
15 Katherine Baicker and Amitabh Chandra, The Effect of Malpractice Liability on the Delivery of Health Care, National Bureau of Economic Research, Working Paper, 10709, 2004.