News & Events

Franklin Lakes, NJ (November 28, 2000) -- BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) (NYSE: BDX - news), a global leader in the manufacture of safety-engineered medical devices, applauds the recent passage of legislation related to the minimization of medication-related errors in California acute care facilities.

''BD is delighted to witness the passage of legislation that will help improve patient safety by reducing medical errors,'' stated Sam Riccitelli, vice president and general manager of BD.id, a strategic initiative focusing on the delivery of innovative technologies to reduce medical errors. ''California has set a vital precedent on an issue of critical national importance.''

In November 1999, the Institute of Medicine released a report, ''To Err is Human,'' stating that medical errors within the U.S. healthcare system could cause up to 98,000 patient deaths per year and that it could unnecessarily cost the U.S. healthcare system between $17 and $29 billion annually. As a result, President Clinton issued a White House proposal that U.S. hospitals must strive to reduce the incidence of errors by fifty percent within five years.

The California legislation, introduced by Senator Jackie Speier (D-CA) on February 24, 2000, was passed by the California Assembly and Senate in August and signed into law by Governor Gray Davis on September 28, 2000. The bill (California SB 1875) requires that acute care hospitals provide the State Department of Health Services with a formal plan to eliminate or substantially reduce medication-related errors no later than January 1, 2002. As a condition to continue hospital licensure, the state-approved plan must be implemented on or before January 1, 2005, and must include technology that has been shown effective in preventing medication-related events that adversely affect patient safety.

BD.id has developed advanced information technology and bar-coding solutions to ensure positive patient identification and reduce medical errors at the point of care. Current acute care facilities using the BD.id solutions for specimen and medication management have been able to demonstrate error reduction that is directly linked to patient safety by up to two-thirds.

The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, New Jersey, was the first hospital in the United States to implement the BD systems. ''We were pleased to present the results of our patient safety initiatives at this year's national CLMA show in Anaheim, California,'' said Audrey Meyers, the hospital's President and Chief Executive Officer. ''With implementation of process changes and BD's technology, we have reduced medical errors. This effort has provided a direct positive impact to our hospital, patients and community.''

Riccitelli stated that BD will continue to advocate patient safety legislation and predicts other states will follow California's leadership in this effort.

''Our company is privileged to help healthcare facilities protect their patients from medical errors by offering important technological solutions,'' he added. ''BD remains firmly committed to providing education and support to improve patient care, and we will continue to affirm our corporate vision of helping all people live healthy lives by offering the highest quality devices available.''

BD is a medical technology company that manufactures and sells a broad range of supplies, devices, and systems for use by health care professionals, medical research institutions, industry and the general public. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2000, BD reported total revenues of $3.6 billion.

To learn more about reducing medical errors, go to www.bd.com/bdid.