FRANKFORT – Doctors’ reviews of other doctors would not be admissible in
medical-malpractice lawsuits under a bill headed to the governor’s desk.
A measure, known as House Bill 4, received final passage by a vote of 25-13 today in
the Senate. The legislation would exempt peer-review discussions from discovery, a
pre-trial procedure in a lawsuit to obtain evidence. Peer review is used to
determine whether accepted standards of care have been met.
“Very few health care initiatives have been shown to be more effective in improving
health care safety/quality than medical safety peer review,” said Sen. Ralph
Alvarado, R-Winchester, who presented the HB 4 on the Senate floor. “Yet, for
decades, Kentucky has languished behind other states.”
Alvarado said candid peer review could be a source of information for physicians to
learn from unexpected events and prevent future errors. He said that confidentiality
of these discussions has traditionally been viewed as necessary to their
effectiveness.
Without HB 4, Alvarado said health care professionals are muzzled, medical
innovation is stifled and safety is reduced across Kentucky.
“House Bill 4 seeks to revert the years of underachievement by creating an
environment in which medical safety peer review can improve health care for its
Kentucky citizens as it is intended to do,” he said, adding that 48 other states
already have protections provided by HB 4.
Majority Floor Leader Sen. Damon Thayer, R-Georgetown, said similar bills have been
introduced in the Senate during the three prior sessions.
“For many in this chamber, hearing the final passage you just declared on House Bill
4 is the end of a long road,” he said after the vote was taken.
HB 4 passed the House by a 58-27 vote on Feb. 9.