Medical liability insurance premiums increased nationwide for the seventh consecutive year in 2025, marking the longest sustained upward trend since the early 2000s, according to new research from the American Medical Association.

AMA published two policy research reports on medical liability April 27. The first analyzes annual changes in medical liability insurance premiums between 2016 and 2025. The second examines medical liability claim frequency among patient care physicians in the U.S. between 2016 and 2024.

“Although there was a continued rise in MPL premiums over the past seven years, the severity and the magnitude of this rise pale in comparison to the hard market in the early 2000s,” Allen Hardiman, PhD, AMA’s lead economist, wrote in the first report. “Nevertheless, if this upward trajectory continues to worsen in the future, it could lead to a negative impact on patients’ access to care.”

A hard market refers to a period marked by significant premium increases, stricter underwriting and reduced coverage availability.

Six things to know:1. The share of medical liability premiums that increased year-over-year jumped from 13.7% in 2018 to 39.9% in 2025.

2. Last year, physicians in 36 states reported at least one premium increase. Physicians in 11 states had at least one premium increase by 10% or more.

3. Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Florida, Illinois and New York saw the largest increases between 2024 and 2025. California remained an outlier with significantly lower premiums, as the state has a cap on non-economic damages.

4. Premiums were highest for OB/GYN and general surgery, reflecting greater liability exposure in those specialties.

5. Overall, 28.7% of physicians reported being sued during their careers in 2024, down from 34% in 2016.

6. Physicians 55 and older were more likely to be sued (45.2%) compared to those under 45 (11%). Among OB/GYNs and general surgeons 55 and older, nearly three in four had faced at least one claim in their careers.

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