Table 4. State data: Ordinary least squares (OLS) estimates—Number of physicians per 100,000 residents

Impact of State Laws Limiting Malpractice Awards on Geographic Distribution of Physicians

(1985, 1990, 1995, and 2000 data with dummy time variables; N = 196)

Explanatory variable	Coefficient	Standard error	t statistic
Intercept	104.54	30.08	3.47
Percent of population age 65 years or older	3.89	1.78	2.19
Hospital beds per 1,000 residents	-.03	.03	-1.02
Percent of population unemployed	-4.59	1.92	-2.39
Population in thousands of residents per square mile	16.67	2.20	7.58
Personal income in thousands of dollars	5.00	.96	5.21
Farm income as percent of state domestic product	-4.20	1.09	-3.81
State law capping damage awards in malpractice cases (1=yes, 0=no)	23.99	6.21	3.86
1985 (1=yes, 0=no)	24.08	10.98	2.19
1995 (1=yes, 0=no)	-16.08	8.80	-1.83
2000 (1=yes, 0=no)	78.96	21.50	3.67

Adjusted R²= .58.

Current as of July 2003

Internet Citation: Table 4. State data: Ordinary least squares (OLS) estimates—Number of physicians per 100,000 residents: Impact of State Laws Limiting Malpractice Awards on Geographic Distribution of Physicians. July 2003. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/research/findings/final-reports/tortcaps/torttab4.html