The Joint Council on the Accreditation of Hospital Organizations (JCAHO) is taking heat for a recent decision to change its policies on how it sanctions hospitals. The move comes despite last year's GAO report that found the organization often fails to publicly criticize hospitals with serious problems. Critics say the move is a step in the wrong direction, arguing the threshold for reporting problems involving patient safety should be lowered--not raised. Of course, hospitals often see things differently, arguing that public outing is overly punitive.
- see this article from the Los Angeles Times