The truth is that patients almost never sue their doctor -- even when they are harmed by their doctor’s negligence.  A comprehensive study performed by Harvard and cited approvingly by the Bush administration noted that of all patients harmed by negligence, only 1.53% filed a claim.[6]  This means that 98.47% of patients harmed by their doctors’ negligence do not seek to hold the doctor accountable.

Of all the lawsuits filed in Georgia, only about 5-7% of those cases are personal injury cases.[7]  And, of that 5-7%, only 4-5% of those cases involve medical malpractice claims.[8]  Thus, medical malpractice claims make up somewhere between .2% and .35% of all the civil lawsuits filed in Georgia.[9]  In fact, other than family law disputes, the overwhelming majority of lawsuits filed in our state involve business litigation and the overwhelming majority of plaintiffs filing lawsuits are businesses.  That includes some of the same businesses now screaming for tort reform.

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