A clearinghouse for information on disciplinary and malpractice actions against physicians created by the Health Care Quality Improvement Act (HCQIA) of 1986, which went into operation in 1990. The Act requires that (1) an insurance company (or other entity) which makes a payment on a malpractice claim (whether in settlement or pursuant to a court decision), (2) a state board of medical examiners which imposes a sanction on a physician, and (3) a health care entity (such as a hospital) which takes a professional review action adversely affecting a physician’s privileges for more than 30 days, must report these actions to the Data Bank. Eligible parties may then inquire of the Data Bank for information about a particular physician; for example, a hospital may inquire prior to granting privileges. If a hospital fails to comply with the reporting requirements, it loses for three years the protection it would otherwise have under the Act.
A national databank, created by the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986, that receives, stores, and disseminates records on the conduct and competence of medical professionals. Health care facilities use the information contributed to the databank during hiring and credentialing. The databank stores information relating to medical malpractice payments made on behalf of health care practitioners; information relating to adverse actions taken against clinical privileges of physicians, osteopaths, or dentists; and information concerning actions by professional societies that adversely affect membership.