California’s scheduled MICRA increases continue on January 1, 2027. The change affects noneconomic damages in professional-negligence cases against health-care providers and institutions; it does not cap medical bills, lost income, or other economic losses.
Confirmed: 2027 MICRA Noneconomic-Damages Caps
Under Civil Code section 3333.2, as amended by AB 35, the base noneconomic-damages limits for 2027 are:
- $510,000 for a medical malpractice case in which the patient survives.
- $700,000 for medical malpractice resulting in wrongful death.
That is an increase from the 2026 limits of $470,000 and $650,000. The injury cap rises by $40,000 each January 1 through 2033; the wrongful-death cap rises by $50,000. Beginning in 2034, the statutory ceiling amounts receive 2 percent annual inflation adjustments.
Which Year’s Cap Applies?
For cases filed or arbitrations demanded on or after January 1, 2023, the statute generally uses the dollar amount in effect when the case resolves by judgment, arbitration award, or settlement—not simply the amount in effect on the date of injury. Timing can therefore change the applicable limit.
The Cap Is for Noneconomic Loss Only
MICRA’s section 3333.2 limit covers pain, suffering, inconvenience, physical impairment, disfigurement, and other nonpecuniary harm. It does not cap proven economic damages such as:
- Past and future medical expenses
- Lost wages and loss of future earning capacity
- Future care and life-care-plan costs
- Funeral and burial expenses in a wrongful-death case
More Than One Cap May Apply
AB 35 created separate potential limits for categories of defendants: health-care providers collectively, health-care institutions collectively, and in qualifying circumstances unaffiliated providers or institutions responsible for separate and independent negligence. That does not mean every case automatically receives two or three caps. The defendants’ relationships and alleged acts determine the analysis.
Deadlines Remain Short and Specialized
California medical malpractice claims commonly face Code of Civil Procedure section 340.5’s rule requiring suit by the earlier of three years after injury or one year after the plaintiff discovers, or through reasonable diligence should have discovered, the injury, subject to statutory exceptions. Section 364 generally requires 90 days’ advance notice before filing. Wrongful-death, public-entity, minor, fraud, foreign-object, and tolling issues can change the calculation.
Do not wait for the MICRA cap to rise before seeking advice; a limitation period can expire while records and expert evidence become harder to obtain.
Practical Steps for Patients and Families
- Request complete medical records, imaging, billing records, and provider communications.
- Write a dated chronology while events are fresh.
- Preserve proof of lost income, out-of-pocket costs, future-care needs, and the effect on daily life.
- Have qualified counsel evaluate both breach of the standard of care and causation; a poor result alone is not malpractice.
Learn more about evaluating a medical malpractice case. Contact Jonny Law promptly for advice about your facts. This page is general information, not legal advice.
Primary authority: AB 35 (2022); Civil Code section 3333.2.
