According to the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), the third leading cause of death in the United States is medical negligence. It falls right behind heart disease and cancer. In 2012, the cost of medical malpractice payouts was more than $3 billion, which was an average of 1 payout every 43 minutes. About 65,000 to 200,000 deaths are caused each year by medical accidents. According to hospital records, 25,000 to 120,000 deaths are a result of medical malpractice or negligence every year.

According to a Harvard University study, every year, about 95,000 people in the United States are killed by medical malpractice in hospitals. Another 400,000 are victims of medical errors and medical negligence. According to a US government report, it is estimated that about 10% of physicians require discipline that range from supervision to loss of license. However, disciplinary action is taken against only six-tenths of 1%.