Released March 2001, this headline-making report from the Institute of Medicine, concludes that the nation's health care industry has failed to provide "safe, high-quality care consistently to all Americans." Offering a comprehensive assessment, the report criticizes the inability of current institutional structures to effectively treat those with "even common chronic conditions" because of the...

The Senate debate on what has come to be known as the "Patients' Bill of Rights" is the focus of this week¹s In the News. The call for legislation of this type has garnered increased attention and support over the past two years as complaints have mounted over the often unappealable decisions of HMOs to deny coverage or restrict access. While both Democrats and Republicans favor such legislation,...