Medical Malpractice: Effects of Varying Laws in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the effects of laws in Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia, focusing on: (1) the rationale behind selected reforms states have made to their medical malpractice tort law; (2) whether selected tort reforms have reduced malpractice insurance costs and the costs associated with defensive medicine; (3) the extent to which the District, Maryland, and Virginia have adopted selected tort reforms; and (4) comparing malpractice claim payments, insurance premiums, and numbers of physicians in the District; Baltimore, Maryland; and Richmond, Virginia.