Pennsylvania Superior Court Holds that, Under Section 311 of MCARE, Matters Reviewed Do Not Require a Document Be Specifically Reviewed by a Patient Safety Committee

The trial court had ordered production of patient safety reports which were (i) prepared in accordance with MCARE, (ii) intended to be confidential, and (iii) contained information identical to that conveyed to the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority protected by Section 311(d) of MCARE. The defendant-hospital claimed that the documents were privileged pursuant to MCARE, as they were patient safety event reports created in accordance with an adopted patient safety plan created in accordance with MCARE. The Superior Court, on appeal, reversed the trial court’s determination and found that “matters reviewed” as stated in Section 311(a) of MCARE do not require the purportedly privileged document under Section 311(a) have been reviewed by a patient safety committee or governing board in order to establish protection. Rather, at a minimum, based on the statutory interpretation of Section 311 of MCARE, a party only needs to demonstrate that the document “arose out of matters reviewed by a patient safety committee or a governing board pursuant to their section 311(b) responsibilities.” While this decision is unreported, it will still be beneficial in asserting patient safety privileges under Section 311 of MCARE. 

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