The Physician Insurers Association of America's latest report indicates that about 8% of all claims payments in medical liability lawsuits today exceed $1 million. That is double the percentage of claims of a million dollars or more made in 1978. The report also noted that the average payment climbed to $328,000, an increase from $200,000 in 1996. Only 25% of all malpractice claims last year included an indemnity payment for insurers and only 1% of the 8,000 cases studied by the PIAA resulted in a verdict for the plaintiff against a doctor. PIAA spokesman are of the opinion that these statistics show that the cost of insurance for doctors cannot be limited until Congress imposes caps on noneconomic damages in malpractice lawsuits.