United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2000-11-17 monographic deposited born digital 52 p. GA 1.13:GAO-01-130 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-130 P0b002ee180397ca4 f:d01130 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-24 GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-130 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-130 GAO-01-130 Medical information systems Data integrity Internal controls Malpractice (medical) Statistical data Health care personnel Reporting requirements HHS National Practitioner Data Bank HHS Healthcare Integrity and Protection Data Bank Letter Report While the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB) is presently the nation's only central source of medical malpractice payment information, it is not clear that all such data are being properly reported. While GAO sampled 1 month's submissions, its review suggests that NPDB information may not be as accurate, complete, or as timely as it should be. Inaccuracies in the way reported information was coded could confuse or mislead querying organizations about the severity of actions taken against practitioners. Additionally, duplicate reports overstate the amount of information the NPDB has on a particular practitioner. The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has not established criteria for the descriptive information that must be reported by states and other entities when notifying the data bank of the disciplinary actions taken. Moreover, HRSA does not have procedures for ensuring that reporters adhere to the criteria it has established for medical malpractice reports, including inappropriate references to patients' names. Furthermore, the practitioner notification and dispute resolution processes have not ensured that inaccurate and erroneously reported information is removed from the data bank and not released to entities seeking information on specific practitioners. Finally, without an examination of its financial operations, HRSA has little assurance that its NPDB user fees are appropriate. An analysis of its cash balances and cash flows--user fee collections and disbursements--would be the best way for HRSA to determine the appropriateness of fees. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-130/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-130.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-130/pdf/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-130.pdf GAO-01-130 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-130 Letter Report GAO-01-130; National Practitioner Data Bank: Major Improvements Are; Medical information systems Data integrity Internal controls Malpractice (medical) Statistical data Health care personnel Reporting requirements HHS National Practitioner Data Bank HHS Healthcare Integrity and Protection Data Bank Public Law 99-660 Public Law 100-93 Public Law 103-62