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Laws Pertaining to Healthcare-Associated Infections: A Review of 3 Legal Requirements

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

Julie Reagan*
Affiliation:
HAI Focus, Edgewood, New Mexico
Carl Hacker
Affiliation:
School of Public Health, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Texas
*
HAI Focus, 14 Cedar Ridge, Edgewood, NM 87015 (juliereagan@mac.com)

Abstract

We reviewed US state and territorial healthcare-associated infection (HAI) laws, specifically addressing 3 legal requirements: data submission, reporting of data to the public, and inclusion of facility identifiers in public reports. The majority of US states and territories have HAI laws. The 3 studied legal provisions are all commonly included in state HAI laws in varying forms; however, only a minority of states and territories specifically mandate all 3 legal requirements. The laws of the remaining states vary considerably.

Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2012;33(1):75-80

Type
Review Article
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America 2012

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