Texas Lawmakers Pass Hospital infection Reporting Bill

SB 288 requires hospitals to publicly disclose information about certain infections patients develop during treatment. The bill follows the recommendations of an interim committee established in 2005 by the state legislature to develop a plan for hospital infection reporting. Under the bill approved by Texas lawmakers, hospitals would be required to disclose rates for surgical site infections for selected operations and blood stream infections associated with central lines. Ambulatory surgical centers would be required to disclose infection rates for selected surgeries. Pediatric hospitals would be required to disclose rates for selected surgical and respiratory infections that can occur more frequently in their facilities. This information would be made available to the public in a report detailing the patient infection rates for each hospital in Texas.