Public release of hospital specific death rates. Guidelines for health care executives.

Recent changes in the regulatory guidelines of the Freedom of Information Act have allowed greater public access to hospital specific data concerning Medicare patients. The result has been a significant increase in media attention to hospital outcomes, particularly death rate data. This article outlines the changes and potential problem areas, discusses how hospitals in Birmingham, Alabama were affected, and how they responded. Proactive strategies for managing the public release of hospital specific death rates are proposed as part of an ongoing quality management program.