[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 57 (Friday, May 8, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4559-S4560]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. REID:
  S. 2055. A bill to require Medicare providers to disclose publicly 
staffing and performance data in order to promote improved consumer 
information and choice, to protect employees of Medicare providers who 
report concerns about the safety and quality of services provided by 
Medicare providers or who report violations of Federal or State law by 
those providers, and to require review of the impact on public health 
and safety of proposed mergers and acquisitions of Medicare providers; 
to the Committee on Finance.


                     the patient safety act of 1998

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Patient Safety 
Act of 1998. This legislation focuses on the major safety, quality, and 
workforce issues for nurses employed by health care institutions and 
the patients who receive care in these facilities. The Patient Safety 
Act establishes guidelines for hospital participation in Medicare in 
order to protect both health care consumers and workers.
  Health care consumers need access to information about health care 
institutions in order to make informed decisions about where they 
receive care. This legislation would require health care institutions 
to publicly disclose specified information on staffing levels, mix and 
patient outcomes. At minimum, health care institutions would have to 
make public: the number of registered nurses providing direct care; 
numbers of unlicensed personnel utilized to provide direct patient 
care; average number of patients per registered nurse providing direct 
patient care; patient mortality rate; incidence of adverse patient care 
incidents; and methods used for determining and adjusting staffing 
levels and patient care needs.
  Nurses should be able to voice their concerns about dangerous patient 
care conditions without the fear of retribution from their employers. 
The Patient Safety Act of 1998 would add whistleblower protections to 
Medicare law. A violation of this provision would make an institution 
ineligible for Medicare participation.
  Finally, the Patient Safety Act of 1998 would direct the Department 
of Health and Human Services to review mergers and acquisitions of 
hospitals

[[Page S4560]]

to determine their long-term effects on the well-being of patients, the 
community and employees.
  The Patient Safety Act of 1998 is a valuable information resource for 
consumers. This legislation will ensure that the public has the data 
necessary to make informed decisions about their health care providers.
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