The Health Data Commission was discontinued in 1993. Whether public or private, hospitals have a responsibility to the public to be accountable for what we do. Shared information allows us to achieve this accountability. CHA and its members have been strong proponents of a competitive rather than a regulatory market place. A competitive market place is not possible without information.
Information is key to improving performance.
Information which is timely, accurate, uniform and complete is necessary for good health policy. Before such databases were available, legislators and others made decisions on the information available at the time. Typically it was two to three years old, incomplete and full of inaccuracies. In times of rapid change, current information is essential. Whether or not we like the decisions that are made, at least they are based on good information.