Preview · Available August 2026

The 2026 National Risk Environment Report

An early look at the trends shaping medical malpractice risk this year — the divergence of frequency and severity, the ripple effects of COVID, and how tort reform and legal advertising are rewriting exposure.

📖 National Edition

🗓️ Available August 2026

Get the report when it's available

Three forces shaping 2026

What's inside this year's report

Toggle between the year's most important risk signals. Each view is a preview of the deeper analysis coming in the full report.

Fewer claims. Bigger consequences.

Nationally, claim frequency continues to decline. But average verdicts and payments are climbing faster than frequency is falling - so while risk may be declining, it is becoming far more expensive.

Why it matters High-severity claims can outweigh years of hard-won improvements in frequency. Managing exposure now means managing potential outliers.

National claim frequency, 10-year trend

National average indemnity per claim, 10-year trend

COVID changed the risk equation.

The pandemic was an inflection point, not a temporary disruption. Claim volume slowed during lockdowns, then rebounded — and deferred care, staffing strain, and burnout continue to shape outcomes today. Pandemic-era litigation is still moving through the courts.

Why it matters Today's claims behavior is shaped by yesterday's disruption. The pandemic didn't create entirely new risks — it amplified the ones already present.

Slowed

Claim volume during 2020 lockdowns

Rebounded

As patients re-engaged and courts reopened

Persisting

Pandemic-era litigation and workforce strain

Risk depends on where you practice.

The legal environment is no longer uniform. Some states are reinforcing caps and procedural safeguards; others are expanding damage limits or weakening defenses. And legal advertising — billboards, digital, streaming — is influencing claims long before any incident occurs.

Why it matters Jurisdiction is now a primary driver of risk. In high-advertising regions, claim behavior could change before claims appear- higher attorney involvement may often correlate with higher severity.

Uneven

Tort reform landscape across states

Rising

Legal advertising spend, nationwide

Volatile

Claim outcomes may vary according to the level of reforms per state

Tort-reform climate · 2026 preview

Tort-reform climate Strong reform Mixed / uncertain Plaintiff-friendly

Legal ad spend (annual, $M) $25M $75M $150M+

Top states by legal ad spend (2025 est.)

Interactive preview

Demographic Risk Report Card

Risk is not one-size-fits-all. Exposure shifts based on who you are, where you practice, and what you do. Choose a profile to preview how national trends reshape the risk picture. This report is a demonstration only. All findings and scores shown are illustrative and not derived from actual data.

Sample Risk Report Card

National trends · Illustrative preview

Mid-career · Florida · Rural · OB/Surgery/EM/Anes

Who you are

Where are you in your career?

Where you practice

Which state?

Plaintiff-friendly High legal ad spend · $280M/yr

Your practice setting

Where do you practice?

What you do

Which specialty group?

Elevated

Risk Score (1-10)

Risk Score (1–10)

Elevated — severity-driven

Mid-career physicians in high-severity specialties see fewer claims but larger outcomes. Mixed reform environments add unpredictability.

Claim frequency

Moderate

Severity exposure

Elevated

Legal volatility

Elevated

Post-COVID modifier

Moderate

What's shaping this profile

1.Severity concentrates where outcomes are irreversibleHigh-severity specialties carry catastrophic-outcome exposure — fewer claims, larger damages.
2.Legal stability matters as much as legal limitsMixed or recently-changed reforms add unpredictability, even where caps exist on paper.
3.Rural severity outruns rural frequencyFewer claims don't equal lower exposure when a single case carries outsized weight.

Indicators are directional and illustrative, drawn from national trends (not confidential data). The full report layers in specialty, venue, and state-specific detail.

Coming August 2026

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The 2026 National Risk Environment Report will be available in August. Be the first to get access.

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This webpage contains a preview of the forthcoming Risk Environment Report scheduled for release in August 2026. The information presented is provided solely for informational and demonstration purposes and should not be relied on as legal or professional advice. Content included in this preview is subject to change.