Episode # 3 • 17 Jan 2025
Claims Frequency and Severity in 2026
This month we're taking a look at the data available to physicians regarding their risk of malpractice litigation in the US.
We are typically limited to survey data, national insurance company claims data, and data from the National Practitioner Data Bank. We discuss some of the limitations of these, and our increasing appetite for more specialty-specific, geography-specific granular data, and the potential for building better databases that pull comprehensively from these resources and local public records. Doctors deserve clarity and specificity of information in order to make informed decisions about where, and whether, and in what manner, to practice.
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More about this episode
The best data we currently have comes from large insurer claims databases. In today's episode, host Dr. Gita Pensa has the privilege of talking to Robert E. White, Jr., President of The Doctors Company and TDC Group, and the author of a recent article detailing the company's most recent internal data on claims frequency and severity. The Doctors Company is now the largest physician-owned medical malpractice liability (MPL) insurer in the United States, and operates in all fifty states.
The article, "Fewer Physicians Report Being Sued but Medical Malpractice Claim Severity Keeps Rising," details trends of lower frequency of claims but higher severity (increased financial losses per claim), and what that may mean for future costs, impacts on physician practice, and patients' access to healthcare.
Robert E. White, Jr., is President of TDC Group. In his current role, Mr. White oversees the operations of the four business units that make up TDC Group: The Doctors Company, TDC Specialty Underwriters, Healthcare Risk Advisors, and ProAssurance. He assists in the growth of TDC Group and expands its mission-based platform for service to healthcare in whatever practice model members and insureds choose.
Mr. White has more than 50 years of experience in the insurance industry. He managed the claims and loss prevention departments of several commercial and doctor-owned insurance companies before coming to The Doctors Company in an administrative capacity more than 25 years ago. Additionally, he served as President of the insurance operations of FPIC Insurance Group from 2002 to 2011.
Mr. White is Chairman of the Board of the Florida Justice Reform Institute, a Member of the Florida Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, and a Board Member of the Florida Insurance Council, as well as a Board Member and former Chair of the Board of Governors of the Florida Medical Malpractice Joint Underwriting Association. Mr. White is also a former Board Member of the Medical Professional Liability Association, and currently serves on three of its committees. Mr. White received the 2026 Award of Excellence in Honor of Peter Sweetland; the award recognizes individuals who have demonstrated exceptional service, leadership, and long-standing commitment to the MPL community.
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