Profession
MSNJ seeks profile extension
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted June 28, 2004
The Medical Society of New Jersey in June petitioned the state Division of Consumer Affairs to extend the time that physicians have to verify information set to be published June 23 on a new state-run physician profile Web site. MSNJ says there is a great chance that false information could be published about doctors.
MSNJ said it logged complaints from nearly 200 physicians. Some physicians said they had trouble getting into the state's Web site to verify their information, and others said they encountered problems trying to correct false data.
Earlier this month, a federal judge in U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey ruled that the state can go forward with plans to create physician profiles and make the information available to the public. Profiles, available beginning June 23, will include where physicians went to school, medical malpractice payments, criminal convictions, hospital and health care facility privilege restrictions and revocations and disciplinary actions.
The MSNJ filed a lawsuit challenging the 2003 New Jersey Health Care Consumer Information Act that called for the state to make the information available to the public. MSNJ argued that the law was unconstitutional because releasing confidential settlement information conflicts with federal laws that prohibit state legislation from interfering with contracts between private individuals.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2004/06/28/prbf0628.htm.