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NEWS

Older Physicians and Surgical Specialists Face Higher Lawsuit Exposure

June 15, 2026

The American Medical Association’s new medical liability research found that lawsuit exposure varies sharply by physician age and specialty, with older physicians and certain surgical specialists facing much higher lifetime lawsuit rates.

According to the AMA, 45.2% of physicians age 55 and older had been sued at least once during their careers, compared with 11% of physicians under age 45. The report also found that 59.6% of obstetricians and gynecologists and 53.1% of general surgeons had been sued at least once.

Medical Economics, covering the same AMA report, highlighted that surgeons in higher-risk specialties face lifetime lawsuit rates approaching 75% in some older age groups.

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Age Reflects Longer Exposure to Claim Risk

Older physicians generally show higher lawsuit exposure because they have had more years in practice. That does not mean age alone makes a physician a poor risk. For underwriting purposes, age is most relevant when it intersects with claims history, current scope of practice, procedure mix, retirement timing, and prior acts exposure. A physician nearing retirement may also raise questions around tail coverage, continuity of care, and whether claims-made coverage has been maintained without gaps.

For agents, the practical value of the AMA data is that it reinforces the importance of collecting complete historical information before approaching the market. Underwriters need to know not only whether a physician has been sued, but what happened, when it happened, whether the matter is open or closed, and how the practice has changed since.

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Specialty Remains a Major Underwriting Factor

The AMA report confirms that specialty remains one of the clearest predictors of medical liability exposure. OB-GYN and general surgery have long been treated as higher-risk classes because the severity potential is substantial, the procedures are more invasive, and adverse outcomes can lead to complex damages allegations. Prior research published in the New England Journal of Medicine also found wide variation in malpractice risk by specialty, with surgical specialties facing higher claim rates than many lower-risk fields.

This is why carrier appetite can vary so dramatically from one physician class to another. A clean internal medicine account and a clean obstetrics account may both be medically professional risks, but they do not present the same severity profile, venue sensitivity, or reinsurance concern.

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Why This Matters in Placement

The AMA findings are useful because they support what experienced MPL brokers see in the market: lawsuit exposure is not evenly distributed. For retail agents, this affects how a submission should be built. Higher-risk specialties usually require more complete documentation, clearer loss explanations, stronger risk-management context, and careful attention to limits, retroactive dates, consent-to-settle provisions, and tail obligations.

Western Summit’s role in these situations is not simply to find a quote. It is to position the account in a way that helps underwriters understand the actual risk rather than relying only on class assumptions. That can be especially important for physicians with prior claims, older physicians transitioning toward retirement, and surgical specialists in difficult venues.

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The Takeaway

The AMA’s new report shows that physician lawsuit exposure remains highly uneven by age and specialty. For retail agents, those differences matter because they shape underwriting appetite, documentation needs, pricing expectations, and coverage strategy.