§11111 Professional review

Summary

Protects people from being sued for damages when they take part in a professional review of a physician, as long as the review follows the rules in section 11112(a), except for the special case below. The protection covers the review body itself, its members and staff, anyone under contract with the body, and anyone who helps with the review. It also protects people who give information about a physician’s competence or conduct, unless the information is false and the person knew it was false. (Professional review action = a formal review of a physician’s conduct or competence.) If the Secretary believes a health care entity failed to report required information under section 11133(a), the Secretary must investigate. After notice, a chance to fix the problem, and a hearing, the Secretary may publish the entity’s name in the Federal Register. Once published, the review protections do not apply to that entity’s professional review actions begun during the 3-year period that starts 30 days after the publication date. The protections apply to State laws only for actions started on or after October 14, 1989, unless a State passes a law saying it will apply earlier; that State choice cannot cover actions that began before the State law took effect, and the law’s effective date cannot be earlier than when the law was enacted.