MAYFIELD HEIGHTS, OH, February 21, 2012
/24-7PressRelease/ -- The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently introduced rules restricting how reporters and researchers can use information maintained in the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB). The NPDB was created as part of the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986 and contains information on medical liability payments and adverse actions against physicians and health care professionals.
The database was created following a dramatic rise in
medical malpractice claims and concern that physicians with negative histories could too easily move their practices from one state to the next. The database allows hospitals, state licensure boards and certain health care entities to access information from any state. Journalists and researchers may also access some of the database's information, but with limitations.
The decision to limit access to the public was in response to pressure from the American Medical Association (AMA). At its insistence, the legislation limited access to full reports to licensing boards, law enforcement and certain health care organizations.
To manage public requests for data, NPDB managers created a separate public file. Information in the public file has been purged of key personal indicators such as names, birth dates, Social Security numbers, medical license numbers and more. With technological advances, however, maintaining anonymity has become increasingly difficult. Since 2000, a number of journalists have been able to piece together enough data to accurately identify various physicians in the system.
Just prior to the publication of an article last September, HHS shut down the database, saying it was due to a breach in confidentiality. Journalists, researchers and safety advocates protested the decision. Joining in the protest was Sen. Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa and government transparency advocate. The database was restored early last November.
While advocates for free speech praised the resurrection of the system, the decision to implement new restrictions was not viewed as highly. The data bank's newly reposted public file requires journalists to agree not to combine the information in the database with information that would let them learn a doctor's identity.
Knowledge about a physician's disciplinary history allows consumers the power to protect their families from doctors with serious disciplinary issues that could place them at risk. The information in the database that is currently kept secret would empower individuals to find the best possible care for their families and themselves.
Even patients who perform detailed background research on physicians can still become victims of medical malpractice; it is important for patients to question doctors on diagnoses and recommended treatment regimes. Doctors should be able to provide a sound basis for their medical opinions and shouldn't be shy about disclosing their line of thinking. Still, even the most careful patients can suffer
injury from a doctor's error.
If you or a loved one has suffered serious harm because of a medical error, contact an experienced
medical malpractice lawyer to discuss your legal options for recovering financial damages.
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