Economic damages: documented, and never capped
Economic damages are the receipt-backed part of a claim: medical expenses already incurred, lost wages, property damage, and reasonably anticipated future medical care or lost earning capacity tied to the injury. In California, this category has no statutory ceiling at all — not in an ordinary injury case, and not even in medical malpractice.
Non-economic damages: the category MICRA actually reaches
Non-economic damages cover the subjective losses: pain and suffering, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life, and a spouse's loss of consortium. In most California personal injury cases, this category is just as uncapped as the economic side. The one exception is medical malpractice, where MICRA specifically limits this category — and only this category — to $350,000 (non-death, 2023 figure) or $500,000 (wrongful death).
Why this split matters more in a medical malpractice case
If your claim is against a health care provider, the economic vs. non-economic distinction becomes genuinely important: your economic damages remain completely uncapped, while your non-economic damages run into MICRA's ceiling. A thorough, well-documented economic damages tally does real work in that scenario — it's the half of the claim with no limit.
Future costs count too
Anticipated future medical treatment tied to the injury — a planned surgery, ongoing physical therapy, or expected lost earning capacity — is generally treated as an economic damage alongside expenses already paid, provided it's reasonably supported by medical documentation.