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Fair Warning

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A task force has recommended that the names of conditionally accredited hospitals be made public by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. So they should be.

The commission carries out inspections of about 80% of the nation’s hospitals every three years. Of those inspected, 90% are usually accredited, 2% fail to receive accreditation, and 8% receive only conditional accreditation. But the names of those on the conditional accreditation list have been kept secret--not even shared with the Health Care Finance Administration that administers Medicare and Medicaid. And, in response to public inquiries, the commission has made no distinction between those accredited and those given so-called TNA status--tentative non-accreditation. There are about 400 hospitals in that marginal category.

A task force on confidentiality, made up of commission members, has recommended that names of conditionally accredited hospitals be made public and full reports on the inspections be made to the Health Care Finance Administration, which would clear the way for release to the public of those details. The commission is expected to accept the recommendation at its meeting in April.

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If the proposal is approved, the new policy will go into effect July 1. Congress may act in the meantime to accelerate and broaden the release of the reports. Further rule changes are expected when the General Accounting Office completes a commission review that was ordered by Congress after the Wall Street Journal revealed the secrecy that has been shrouding commission reports.

The proposed policy change recognizes that the marginal hospitals pose a potential risk to patients. The release of the information is undoubtedly in the public interest.

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