Government To Allow Use Of Medicare Claims Database To Rate Physicians.

The AP  (12/6, Alonso-Zaldivar) reports, "The government announced Monday that Medicare will finally allow its extensive claims database to be used by employers, insurance companies and consumer groups to produce report cards on local doctors -- and improve current ratings of hospitals." Now, "by analyzing masses of billing records, experts can glean such critical information as how often a doctor has performed a particular procedure and get a general sense of problems such as preventable complications." The AP adds, "Medicare acting administrator Marilyn Tavenner called the new policy 'a giant step forward in making our health care system more transparent and promoting increased competition, accountability, quality and lower costs.'"