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Date: Monday,  June 26, 1995
For Release: Immediately
Contact:  Bonnie Aikman, PHS/HRSA) (301) 443-3376

HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala said, "The new system provides greater accuracy and faster response at lower costs to both the government and data bank users."

Established in 1990, the data bank collects information on adverse actions taken against health practitioners and malpractice payments made on their behalf. This information is made available to hospitals and other health care groups that review credentials of medical personnel.

HRSA Administrator Ciro V. Sumaya, M.D., M.P.H.T.M., noted that the data bank enables the health professions to better identify incompetent practitioners, ultimately benefiting health consumers. Dr. Sumaya said, "This completely automated system will enable the data bank to do its job better and faster."

Under the new system, charges for data requests will be reduced from $6 to $3 per name if the request is made available through telecommunications services and is paid for electronically by credit card or electronic transfer of funds.

In addition, most requests will now be answered within 24 hours. Under the old system, responses were made within five working days for a single name or 20 working days for multiple names. This improvement in the response rate is possible despite the increase in requests from 800,000 during its first year of operation to more than 2 million this year.

Free software packages are given to those reporting information to the data bank to assist electronic querying or submission of information.

HRSA is one of eight Public Health Service agencies within the Department of Health and Human Services.