Kirk: Hospitals should give infection data

A 2003 state law requires hospitals to disclose health care-related infection rates. But more than four years later, the law has yet to be implemented.

U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk Monday called for federal action that would force hospitals to comply.

The Healthy Hospitals Act would give patients information needed to make informed decisions about care, Kirk said at an appearance at Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights.

"I'm worried that Illinois is falling behind," he said. "Illinois led the nation in requiring a hospital report card that was put in law in 2003. Here it is, 2008, and we haven't had any report card issued yet."

Several states now publish report cards, and 21 have passed related legislation.

And if Illinois won't grant access to the information, Kirk says Congress should.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1.7 million Americans will contract in-house hospital or nursing home infections each year -- of those, 99,000 will die.

Kirk said those add $5 billion to annual health care costs. Serious surgical-related infections add an average $57,000 to a patient's bill.

He sees the legislation as a way to improve care but also lower costs to patients, providers and government health care programs.

Full disclosure might also prompt hospitals to work harder to make improvements to lower infection rates, Kirk said.

Northwest Community made public its quality report card in September, making it the first Chicago-area institution to do so, President and CEO Bruce Crowther said.

The hospital Web site compares its rates and other data to national averages in a variety of conditions such as pneumonia, surgical site infections and bloodstream infections like MRSA.

Kirk lauded the hospital for taking the lead and for its transparency, even though it meant disclosing some categories where it falls short.

Northwest Community will in the upcoming months release more disease- and procedure-specific data.

Those exploring hip replacement surgery, for example, will learn infection rates, success rates and number of surgeries performed. The hospital is also developing a calculator to estimate out-of-pocket costs based on insurance coverage and deductibles.

Though Northwest Community's report card exceeds the would-be law's minimum federal standards, Crowther says they want to do more.

"We think what we've put out there is a good start, but it's inadequate," he said.

The cost hospitals face to gather and publish data on a quarterly basis would quickly be offset, Kirk said.

"If you spend $100,000 putting data up online but it leads to significant health care outcomes for just five patients, you already made up the difference," he said.

The bill is a good start, but more needs to be done, says Dan Seals, the Democrat who will challenge the Republican Kirk in November.

"I think Kirk offers Band-Aids to the health care system when what it needs is a cure," said Seals. "The change we really need is to lower the $12,000 in health care costs that the average family faces every year. That's where the focus needs to be."

But Kirk says hospitals will work to bridge gaps in the areas they don't measure up. Fewer infections will benefit consumers' pockets.