Doctor Data Back Online in Illinois

Illinois patients once again can use a public website to find out whether their doctors and chiropractors have shady histories.

The Physician Profile became available Wednesday on the website for the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.

It allows consumers to see whether a doctor has been disciplined in Illinois or in another state. Malpractice judgments and settlements going back five years are posted.

The searchable database was taken offline last year when the Illinois Supreme Court declared a medical malpractice reform law unconstitutional.

A new law reinstated the database and gave doctors 60 days to review the information before the site went live. That review period has passed, allowing the comeback.

The website drew more than 150,000 hits weekly before it went dark in 2010.