Page 9 - 2022 Risk Basics - Radiology

SVMIC Risk Basics: Radiology

• Of all radiology claims, 17 percent cited CT scans of which 13

percent resulted in an average indemnity payment of $366,297.

• Approximately 21 percent of the total indemnity paid involved

mammography, with an average indemnity payment of $527,400.

• The most prevalent factor in radiology claims was error in diagnosis,
which was cited as the primary issue in 55 percent of the claims

reported.

• The most expensive medical factor noted in radiology claims also

was error in diagnosis, which accounted for more than $262 million
of indemnity paid – 75 percent of the total indemnity paid for all

radiology claims.

• Approximately 37 percent of the closed claims involved errors in

diagnosis and resulted in an average indemnity payment of $379,113.

• Death was the most prevalent severity of injury reported, and minor

permanent injury was the most expensive for radiology claims.

• Patient death occurred in 26 percent of the radiology incidents,
while 26 percent was the figure for patient death claims in all other

healthcare specialties combined.

A review of State Volunteer Mutual Insurance Company’s (SVMIC) data

reinforces that the likelihood of a physician being sued at least once is
greater than 88 percent. This percentage is consistent with the MPL

Association (PIAA) findings.

In an evaluation of frequency of claims, defined as defined as lawsuits
and demands for payment where no lawsuit was filed, the SVMIC specific

data placed radiology sixth overall compared to all other specialties
according to data collected during the last ten years. Radiology was

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