Determining whether mandatory public reporting reduces the rate of health-care-associated infections

The Foundation's program, Public Health Law Research: Making the Case for Laws That Improve Health, was designed to build the evidence for public health law and policy, translate research findings into practical tools to increase the support for and use of law by policy makers and public health practitioners, and to translate findings to other fields and venues to improve and protect health.The U.S. suffers from an epidemic of health-care-associated infections (HAIs): 1.7 million annual infections and 100,000 deaths. Many HAIs are preventable, but hospitals have limited incentives to prevent them. Over 20 states now have laws requiring hospitals to publicly report infection rates, and national reporting is coming. This study will explore whether reporting: affects infection rates; causes hospitals to reduce actual HAI rates, reported rates, or both; results are used by infection control practitioners and consumers; schemes vary in their effectiveness; choices by public health agencies in implementing these programs affect their success. Deliverables include: posting working papers on the Social Science Research Network website; both empirical and policy oriented publications in suitable peer-reviewed journals in medicine, economics, law and economics, and public health; and presentations at suitable, medical, health law, public health, and infection control conferences, including the annual conference.

Grant Details

Amount Awarded $449,994.00

Awarded on: 11/15/2011

Time frame: 11/15/2011 - 5/14/2014

Grant Number: 69664