RICHMOND, Va. — The federal government shutdown late last year enabled the Virginia Department of Health to make some progress addressing a massive backlog of overdue hospital inspections, but 98 percent of required biennial inpatient hospital inspections are still behind schedule.
State law requires VDH to inspect hospitals every two years to ensure things like proper infection control and sterilization procedures for contaminated supplies. However, as CBS 6 investigative reporter Melissa Hipolit exclusively reported in September, nearly all inspections were overdue at that time.
Five months later, the situation remains largely unchanged for inpatient hospitals, according to VDH spokeswoman Maria Reppas. The number of backlogged biennial inpatient hospital inspections is virtually unchanged, with 98% still overdue compared to 99% in September…