The following is a summary of legislation by state regarding the disclosure by hospitals of their hospital infection rates.

Arkansas

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield has expanded its medical cost comparison tool to Ohio, Kentucky and all of Indiana. A previous blog on this site (4/30) outlined Anthem BCBS's inital launch of their online comparison tool in Central Indiana as part of the push to provide consumers with price, quality information for medical care. Anthem BCBS will continue to expand its transparency tool pilot program to new markets, a move that reflects the growing consumer-directed healthcare trend.

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield launched an online tool that allows its members to search for, and compare, the cost of 38 medical procedures at specific hospitals across Central Indiana. Costs vary according to reimbursement rates Anthem has negotiated with individual providers. The tool which allows side-by-side cost comparisons for dozens of providers, helps customers better understand the cost of care they receive for common procedures and services.

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield join Clarian Health and other insurers as part of a push within the health-care industry to provide consumers with more information on the price and quality of medical care.

IndyStar.com reports on a pilot project to rate doctors on peformance which will be available soon in Indiana. The electronic report is designed to let primary-care physicians know how they are doing in making sure patients with certain conditions or risk factors get recommended follow-up tests or treatments. This pilot project, involving Medicare and the nonprofit corporation Indiana Health Information Exchange, combines data from Medicare patients with data from benefits providers such as Medicaid, M-Plan and Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield to produce reports measuring the performance of individual physicians. The physician-performance data eventually could be made publicly available, although the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services gave no specific timetable.