Claims Decreasing - Aon Study

According to Aon and the American Society for Healthcare risk, med mal claims next year will decrease by around a 1% while average claim size will increase around 7.5% (the double edged sword of lower volume).

According to the Journal, the estimated decrease in malpractice claims is "encouraging for medical professionals, who have been waging a high-profile battle against the high cost of malpractice insurance for years,"

Well sure. Fewer claims, less to worry about. But here's the part everyone forgets about lower claim totals...

[the study is also] promising for patients, since it could suggest that hospitals are improving the quality of certain high-risk practice area," such as emergency department care and obstetrics.

A summary of the study can be found here.