AN ACT relating to medical errors.
     Create new sections of KRS Chapter 216B, 164, and 27A to define terms; create an Academy for Health Care Improvement and Cost Reduction; identify responsibilities of the academy related to research to improve patient safety and lower costs of health care, analysis of medical errors, and recommendations to prevent recurrence of medical errors; require the academy to submit a summary report of the data collected by the academy to the secretary of the Cabinet for Health Services, the commissioner of the Department of Insurance, and the Legislative Research Commission, beginning no later than one year after the implementation of the database and quarterly thereafter; authorize the academy to receive state appropriations, gifts, grants, revolving funds, fees for services, federal funds, and any other public and private funds; require hospitals to report adverse medical events, medical errors, and sentinel events; encourage licensed health care providers to report adverse medical events, medical errors, and sentinel events; protect an individual reporting an adverse medical event, medical error, or sentinel event from civil or criminal liability; prohibit a supervisor or administrator for any health facility from taking disciplinary action against an employee reporting an event to the academy; require the academy to remove the identity of the person or the entity making the report after the academy has completed its investigation and reports; exclude patient safety data and reports of the academy from the Kentucky Open Records Act; protect patient safety data and recommendations, findings, and conclusions of the academy from subpoena or submission as evidence in court; require the clerk of the Circuit Court to provide the Administrative Office of the Courts with information sufficient to identify every civil complaint filed with a clerk in Circuit Court or District Court alleging medical malpractice; require the Administrative Office of the Courts to provide those to the academy; permit the academy to inspect court records relating to civil actions involving medical malpractice; provide a copy of requested documents related to a medical malpractice claim to the academy for a reasonable fee; hold records obtained from the court to be held in absolute confidence and not subject to subpoena, open records request, or other compelled or voluntary mechanism in any civil, criminal, or administrative proceeding, except for aggregate summary data; cite Sections 1 to 5 as the Patient Health Care Quality Act of 2004; and delay implementation until funding is available.

     Oct 13-introduced in House; to Appropriations and Revenue (H)
     Oct 14-reported favorably, 1st reading, to Calendar; floor amendment (1) filed
     Oct 15-2nd reading, to Rules