State ranks first in medical negligence lawsuits

Oklahoma ranks first nationwide in the number of medical negligence lawsuits per capita, according to an analysis of U.S. Department of Health and Human Resources data. A team from Weiss & Paarz – a law firm that handles medical malpractice cases in New Jersey and Pennsylvania – reviewed 30 years of claims in every state and found a total of 1.41 million cases were filed involving various types of medical malpractice claims, an average of about 47,000 cases a year. The analysis showed Oklahoma topped the list of lawsuits filed per capita with one for every 3,573 residents.