Report: Large Percentage of Malpractice Cases Involved Missed, Incorrect Diagnoses From Office-Care

A significant percentage of malpractice cases examined in a recent study involved allegations of missed, incorrect, or delayed diagnoses from office-care visits.

Coverys released another installment in a multipart study examining five years of closed malpractice claims and how they impact patient safety.

Nearly 24% of the cases studied were related to office-based care, 38% of office-based care events involved allegations of missed, incorrect, or delayed diagnoses.

Researchers reviewed 6,009 closed events between 2020 and 2024 for the latest portion of the report, HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT: Exposing the Drivers of Diagnostic Error.

According to the study, one-third of office-based diagnostic error events resulted in a patient’s death, and 22% resulted in a patient suffering a high-severity injury. Together, these events accounted for 72% of the indemnity paid.

Researchers found that nearly 45% of office-based events alleged missed cancer diagnoses, with the most frequently missed cancers being prostate, lung, breast and colorectal.

“Specialties with the highest volume of office-based care— internal medicine and family medicine—are most frequently named as the service responsible for the patient’s care at the time of the alleged diagnostic error, accounting for 41% of events and 45% of indemnity paid,” the study states. “As a group, surgical specialties are the second most common service, accounting for 23% of events and 22% of indemnity paid.”

More than half (53%) of the events were closed with an indemnity payment with an average indemnity of $661,000, more than twice the average indemnity paid on claims that were not diagnostic related ($323,000), the Coverys report shows.