REPORT ABSTRACT: Highlights Recent Developments Related To Medical Malpractice

Washington state: A state malpractice law enacted last year prevents public disclosure of reports of medical errors by individual hospitals, according to a legal opinion sent last week by the state Office of the Attorney General to the state Department of Health, the Seattle Times reports. The department has collected and made public reports of certain "adverse events or incidents" by individual hospitals since 2000. However, the Washington State Hospital Association recently asked the department to end public disclosure of the reports on the grounds that the law prohibited the practice. The department agreed to the request, provided that the office concurred in a legal opinion of the association (Ostrom, Seattle Times, 10/30).