Most major health reform proposals include reform of medical malpracti
ce. A major objective of the current medical malpractice system is to
improve quality of care. The authors examine the effect of variations
in the threat of medical malpractice, measured by claims frequency and
payments per exposure year, on various indicators of birth outcomes,
fetal deaths, low Apgar score, death within 5 days of birth, infant de
ath, and death or permanent impairment at 5 years of age. Data came fr
om 2 sources: a Survey of Obstetrical Care of 963 women in Florida in
1992 who delivered 5 years previously; and a fetal death and a linked
birth-death file obtained from Florida Vital Statistics for 1987. Amon
g the outcomes considered, only fetal deaths decreased in response to
an increased threat of being sued, and this relationship was only obta
ined from one of the data sets. Overall, no systematic improvement in
birth outcomes in response to an increased threat of medical malpracti
ce litigation was obtained.