Medical error reporting law passes

Congress passed legislation on Wednesday which would establish a national system for reporting medical errors. Critics of the health care system have argued for years that mistakes claim thousands of lives every year. One well-known estimate by the Institute of Medicine suggests that nearly 100,000 people die annually as a result of mistakes at hospitals. The law is supported by both the AMA and the AHA, and, as a consequence, it stops short of the mandatory reporting requirement that some observers had favored. Hospitals may submit reports on a voluntary basis, a clause which some people think could lead to abuses. The legislation now moves to President Bush for approval.

- see this story from the Washington Post
- see this story from the Los Angeles Times

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