New Law Makes Illinois Doctors' Professional Information Public
The Illinois Patient Right to Know Act will help to ensure that detailed profiles of doctors' professional information is made available to the public.

November 09, 2011 /24-7PressRelease/ -- A proposal that has been hailed as the most important piece of consumer protection legislation became law last month in Illinois. When Governor Pat Quinn signed the Illinois Patient Right to Know Act into law, he helped to ensure that detailed profiles of doctors' professional information will be consistently made available to the public. In addition to outlining basic information such as where physicians went to medical schools or conducted residencies, the government will release information on which doctors have been convicted of crime or been forced to pay medical malpractice claims.

The Act was originally a part of the state's prior attempt at medical malpractice reform in 2008. However, the Illinois Supreme Court struck down the reform package last year. In Lebron v. Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, the Court found that damage caps for non-economic damages were unconstitutional. The reform law included an inseverability clause joining all the sections together. Thus, if one portion of the law failed, the entire law would be defeated. As such, the court disallowed the provisions requiring physicians' web profiles.

State Representative Mary Flowers (D-Chicago) authored the bill. She explained to WBEZ 91.5 FM that the Supreme Court did not rule on whether the web profiles would be improper, and that it only considered the damage caps in rejecting the law. Brent Adams, the Secretary of the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, indicated that the profiles were helpful to consumers before they were taken down. He reported that the profiles received 150,000 hits per week from over 42,000 users while they were operational.

The Department previously retained information about doctors' professional transgressions, but was not required to make such information public. Illinois law already requires hospitals to inform the state when they terminate doctors or restrict their practice privileges. Also, insurance companies report when they make malpractice payments. However, the new law will make this information public, in addition to convictions for class A misdemeanors and felonies.

The release of this information will provide patients invaluable insight into the healthcare system. Given that one of the best ways to avoid medical errors is patient knowledge, the new Act will surely help patients aid in ensuring their own safety.

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