Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are infections that patients contract during the course of healthcare treatment for other conditions and can be devastating or even fatal (" CDC - HAIs the Burden - HAI", 2013). A HAI has been defined as a localized or systemic condition that (1) results from an adverse reaction to the presence of one or more infectious agents or its toxins, (2) that occurs during a hospital stay, (3) for the which there is no evidence that the infection was present or incubating at the time of admission and (4) meets body site-specific criteria (Klevens et al., 2007, p.2). Due to the lack of federal and state laws requiring reporting and infection prevention laws for HAIs, there continues to be an increase in deaths, as well as healthcare and legal costs. Direct legal issues that result in inadequate infection control practices, medical costs of healthcare-associated infections, and the number of deaths that have occurred due to these preventable infections are the main issues this project will focus on. HAI reporting requirements vary from state to state, provider, facility, frequency, and type of infection. Because of this, there is inconsistency in data collection methods, risk management, data validation, and HAI requirements or reporting. Legal requirements and statutes mandating error disclosure must be addressed in order to reduce and prevent HAIs. Additionally, discussion of the legal duties and responsibilities of healthcare providers, facilities, and patients is discussed. Because there is no federal law requiring hospitals to report HAI deaths, much of the data in this report is based on states that have statutes in place requiring them to do so. This was an estimate... half of the document... U of selected provisions in healthcare-associated infection laws. (2012). Retrieved from the Public Health Law Program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website: http://www.cdc.gov/phlp/docs/HAI%20Menu-508.PDFPyrek, K.M. (2009, December 18 ). FOCUS ON PREVENTION: HAI-Related Litigation: What Infection Preventionists Need to Know. Retrieved December 30, 2013, from http://hospitalacquiredinfections.blogspot.com/2010/01/hai-parent-litigation-what-infection.html?m=1Reagan, J. (n.d.). State laws on public reporting of healthcare-associated infections. Retrieved from Public Health Law website: https://www.networkforphl.org/_asset/r77mq0/HAI-Laws-PPT-FINAL.pdfScott II, DR (2009). The direct medical costs of nosocomial infections in US hospitals and the benefits of prevention. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/HAI/pdfs/hai/Scott_CostPaper.pdf