H.R. 5386 — Introduced in House

I 117th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 5386 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES September 27, 2021 Mr. David Scott of Georgia introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To amend the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986 to recognize that physicians need to be protected from abuses of the peer reviewed process, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Shield and Protect Physician Peer-Reviews Act of 2021. 2. Recognizing that physicians need to be protected from abuses of the peer reviewed process (a) In general Section 402 of the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986 (42 U.S.C. 11101; Public Law 99–660) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph: (6) Some peer reviewed decisions may be based on factors other than competence or professional conduct. The stated reason for a professional review action may not be the actual reason for the action, and the actual reason may not be apparent from the face of the action. The need to provide incentive and protection for physicians engaging in effective professional peer review must be balanced against the need to protect competent physicians from peer review decisions that are not based on professional competence or conduct. . (b) Effective date The amendment made by subsection (a) shall take effect as if included in the enactment of the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986.