Hospital Compare website adds infection data

The CMS' Hospital Compare website has been updated with facility-specific data on central line-associated bloodstream infections, a move the agency says will “hold hospitals accountable for bringing down these rates, saving thousands of lives and millions of dollars.”

In January 2011, hospitals were required to begin reporting central line infections to the government in order to receive their full payment update for 2013. The CMS mandated that hospitals report their infection rates through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Healthcare Safety Network, a secure online surveillance system that uses standardized definitions and protocols.

There were approximately 41,000 central line-associated bloodstream infections in U.S. hospitals in 2009, resulting in thousands of deaths and totaling nearly $700 million in additional healthcare costs, according to CDC data quoted in a CMS news release.

The newly added infection data is included under Hospital Compare's “patient safety measures” tab for each hospital, alongside measures of mortality, hospital-acquired conditions such as pressure ulcers, and serious complications such as post-surgical blood clots.

“Today, consumers are getting access to data provided to hospital leaders and clinicians to monitor progress in reducing CLABSIs,” CDC Director Dr. Thomas Frieden said in the release. “This information allows CDC and CMS to highlight prevention and pinpoint where more work is needed on these avoidable infections.”