Editorial & Corrections Policy

How Pages Are Produced

PlainDiscipline's data pages are generated from official public datasets. We download the source data directly from the publisher, load it into a structured database, and render every page from that database. The figures you see, counts, rankings, rates, dates, and breakdowns, come directly from the published records; they are not hand-typed and not estimated by us. According to Public Citizen's analysis of state medical board records and the Federation of State Medical Boards' physician counts, Ohio has the highest state disciplinary-action rate at 1.82 per 1,000 licensed physicians and Indiana the lowest at 0.17 (2021-2023 three-year average). Separately, according to the HHS OIG List of Excluded Individuals/Entities, we track 82,602 federal healthcare-program exclusions across all provider types (not physicians alone), a distinct dataset from the state-level rates above.

This is a data-publishing model: the same template renders many pages so that every record is covered consistently. We are transparent that these data pages are produced programmatically from the source records rather than written individually. The editorial work goes into the pipeline, how data is sourced, normalized, deduplicated, and presented, into the methodology, and into the written guides.

Sourcing Standards

• Primary sources only. Every figure comes from official public datasets, not third-party aggregators.
• Attribution in context. Pages name the source and link to it where applicable, and show the date the data reflects.
• Derived values are labeled. Numbers we compute ourselves, rankings, trends, ratios, are presented as our analysis of the source data, distinct from the publisher's own figures.
• No invented data. Where a field is unavailable for a record, the page says so rather than filling the gap with an estimate.

Update Cadence

We refresh the underlying data on a regular schedule as the source publishes updates, so there can be a lag between an official release and its appearance here. Historical records remain in our database for reference, and the data-vintage date is shown on the relevant pages.

Corrections Process

If a record on PlainDiscipline looks wrong, please tell us. Because our pages are generated from the source datasets, a genuine error almost always traces back to either the source data or our processing of it, so this is how we handle a report:

1. Report. Use the contact page with the page URL and the value that looks off.
2. Verify. We compare the record against the published source.
3. Fix at the source. If the value is wrong on our side, we correct it in the database and pipeline that generate the page, not just on the single page, so every affected page is fixed at once. If the record faithfully reflects the published data, we explain that and point to the primary source.
4. Note it. Material corrections are reflected the next time the page rebuilds.

We aim to acknowledge data-error reports within a few business days.

Editorial Independence

PlainDiscipline is an independent publisher and is not affiliated with the agencies or organizations that publish the underlying data. We do not accept payment, sponsorship, or promoted placement from any covered entity. Our only revenue is contextual display advertising served by Google AdSense; advertisers do not influence what we cover or how we present it.

Appropriate Use

PlainDiscipline is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, medical, or other professional advice. Details can change after we ingest a record. For any important decision, confirm the current information with the primary source or a qualified professional. See our full disclaimer.