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Diagnostic errors called most harmful, costly medical mistakes
Misdiagnoses were responsible for the costliest and deadliest portion of US malpractice claims during the last 25 years, according to new research.After reviewing 350,706 malpractice payments through the National Practitioner Data Bank (1986 to 2010), Johns Hopkins University investigators found that diagnostic errors led all types (28.6%) and also were the costliest type, responsible for 35.2% of total payments, or an inflation-adjusted $38.8 billion.