RÉSUMÉ DIGEST
Act 338 (HB 498) 2015 Regular Session Talbot
Existing law known as the La. Health Care Consumers' Right to Know, R.S. 40:1300.111 et
seq., provides for duties of the Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH) relative to
collecting and maintaining healthcare cost, quality, and performance data; and provides
guidelines, requirements, and restrictions pertaining to the use of such data.
New law adds a provision indicating that the intent of existing law and new law is to improve
transparency in prices and care quality measures by providing for the creation and
maintenance of a useful and comprehensive health service information database that can be
publicly accessed in a manner that ensures protection of individuals' confidential health
information and respects providers of care.
New law adds the following as specific data that DHH is required to collect and publish
online pursuant to the La. Health Care Consumers' Right to Know law:
(1)Healthcare quality information that is easily understandable and published in a format
that allows the user to compare information across providers to the extent practicable.
(2)Data related to payments for health services rendered by healthcare facilities and
practitioners published in an interactive format from which the user can generate
reports.
(3)(a)Data identifying the following:
(i)At least 15 of the most commonly used diagnosis codes.
(ii)At least 15 of the most commonly used procedure codes.
(iii)Any emerging health trends for diagnosis and treatment related to
hospitalization.
(b)New law requires DHH to publish this data in a format that facilitates comparison of
the data from hospitals and other licensed health facilities of this state to similar data
for medical care rendered in other states, to the extent that such data is available.
(4)(a)A list of the hospitals and other licensed health facilities that are in compliance with
the reporting requirements promulgated by DHH.
(b)A list of the hospitals and other licensed health facilities that are not in compliance
with the reporting requirements promulgated by DHH.
New law requires DHH to update the information it collects and publishes pursuant to new
law at least annually.
New law repeals prior law which provided that if sufficient funds were not appropriated to
implement the La. Health Care Consumers' Right to Know law, the application of that law
would be suspended pending appropriation of sufficient funds; and that in such an event, all
accumulated healthcare data would be stored with appropriate confidentiality safeguards,
destroyed, or transferred to another agency or organization in accordance with existing law.
New law requires DHH to promulgate all rules as are necessary to provide for online
publication of data related to health services as specified in new law on or before Dec. 1,
2015.
Effective August 1, 2015.
(Amends R.S. 40:1300.111 and 1300.113(A)(intro. para.), (1), and (9); Repeals R.S.
40:1300.113(B))