disclosure of information concerning the performance of carriers, intermediaries, state agencies, and providers of services under medicare and medicaid

disclosure of information concerning the performance of carriers, intermediaries, state agencies, and providers of services under medicare and medicaid Sec. 249C. (a) Section 1106 of the Social Security Act is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new subsections: “(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section the Secretary shall make available to each State agency operating a program under title XIX and shall, subject to the limitations contained in subsection (e), make available for public inspection in readily accessible form and fashion, the following official reports (not including, however, references to any internal tolerance rules and practices that may be contained therein, internal working papers or other informal memoranda) dealing with the operation of the health programs established by titles XVIII and XIX— “(1) individual contractor performance reviews and other formal evaluations of the performance of carriers, intermediaries, and State agencies, including the reports of follow-up reviews; “(2) comparative evaluations of the performance of such contractors, including comparisons of either overall performance or of any particular aspect of contractor operation; and “(3) program validation survey reports and other formal evaluations of the performance of providers of services, including the reports of follow-up reviews, except that such reports shall not identify individual patients, individual health care practitioners, or other individuals. “(e) No report described in subsection (d) shall be made public by the Secretary or the State title XIX agency until the contractor or provider of services whose performance is being evaluated has had a reasonable opportunity (not exceeding 60 days) to review such report and to offer comments pertinent parts of which may be incorporated in the public report; nor shall the Secretary be required to include in any such report information with respect to any deficiency (or improper practice or procedures) which is known by the Secretary to have been fully corrected, within 60 days of the date such deficiency was first brought to the attention of such contractor or provider of services, as the case may be.” (b) The provisions of subsection (a) shall apply with respect to reports which are completed by the Secretary after the third calendar month following the enactment of this Act.