(IOWA CAPITAL DISPATCH) – A bill that would require Iowa’s medical facilities to inform regulators of any serious medical errors is again facing opposition from the state’s hospitals. Senate File 2185 would require Iowa hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers and birth centers to report any “serious reportable events” — sometimes called “never events” — to the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing.

Such events include injuries or deaths associated with the use of contaminated drugs, major medication errors, the discharge of newborn infants to the wrong patients, surgery on the wrong body part or wrong patient, and artificial insemination with the wrong sperm or donor egg.

Recently, the nonprofit National Quality Forum, an affiliate of the Joint Commission, which accredits many of the nation’s hospitals, reported that more than 30 states and the District of Columbia have incorporated the organizations’ list of reportable events into their own event-reporting programs — some of which require reporting to state regulators, and some of which treat such reporting as voluntary.

Although Senate File 2185 includes provisions that appear intended to elicit support from the medical community — such as a requirement that any reports made to DIAL exclude information that would identify any individual health care professionals involved in an incident — it has, as in years past, run into opposition from the state’s hospitals.

The Iowa Hospital Association, UnityPoint Health and MercyOne are all registered in opposition to the bill. Executives and lobbyists with all three entities did not respond to the Iowa Capital Dispatch’s inquiries last week and Monday about their stance on the legislation.

The bill passed a subcommittee Feb. 12 and moved to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee. The full panel is so far not scheduled to meet this week. Most bills need approval from a committee in either the House or Senate before the end of this week to remain eligible for debate this session.