DENVER -- Finding out if your doctor has a history of being punished is getting easier as a state deadline approaches for physicians to type in their profile in a new state Web site, but it's up to the doctor to self-report and the state won't be auditing their entries.

The Physician Profile System, run through the Department of Regulatory Agencies, or DORA, has been available online since July 2008. But doctors have a Sunday deadline to get their information entered into the system.

So far, more than 15,000 doctors have done so, listing their education, malpractice settlements, crimes, disciplinary actions, employment contracts and business relationships.

"Any settlement of a liability claim must now be reported. Even cases that go to arbitration must be reported," said Susan Miller, DORA's director of the health care section.

Felony convictions and crimes of moral turpitude in any jurisdiction must be included. Failure to do so could cause the Board of Examiners to fine a physician up to $5,000 per omission.

However, doctors who choose to hide something, believing it could be bad for business, will have to be caught by a patient, rather than a government staffer. Accurate reporting will be enforced through citizen complaints, not some sort of "Medicine Police," Miller said.

"We don't have the resources or staffing. We're not auditing the system," Miller said. "The concerns about the accuracy of a profile would be driven by complaints. We investigate them. If someone thinks something is missing and they report it to the board, it's our responsibility to investigate that concern and resolve it.

"The Board also can suspend a license or take other action," Miller said. "The Physician Profile System isn't about whether there's a violation. It's about allowing consumers access to information to help them make more informed decisions about their health care providers."

Because of the passage of the Michael Skolnik Medical Transparency Act in 2007 (HB-07-1331), doctors practicing medicine before Jan. 1, 2008 are now required to fill out this profile in order to renew a medical license.

Skolnik died in June of 2004 after he had surgery done by a doctor who'd been the subject of a malpractice claim in another state.

"We're happy with the feedback on using the system from the physician's side," Miller said. "They were reporting under a mandatory license renewal questionnaire before. The issue was that information was not available to the public unless the board took disciplinary action against a doctor."

This system makes that information easier to find.

Physicians pay an extra $13 to fill out the online renewal application.

"May 31st is the expiration date but there is a 60-day grace period. We anticipate another 1,500 to 2,000 are going to renew their licenses by the end of July," Miller said DORA's director of the health care section. "It was a graduated implementation."

The site is DORA.state.co.us

Look on the right side for the "New" icon and Physician Reporting choice.