Toward full disclosure; As healthcare bond issuers face more troubles, pressure mounts for more information sharing with investors.(Brief Article)

Modern Healthcare, February, 2001 by JAKLEVIC, MARY CHRIS

The municipal bond market, the capital engine that drives not-for-profit hospitals, has a credibility problem.

Unlike stockholders of public corporations, municipal bond investors can't reliably access timely and accurate data about their holdings. Part of the problem is that municipal bonds are largely unregulated, either by the government or by the financial industry, and there are scant disclosure requirements for issuers. Existing disclosure rules are difficult to enforce, and data often don't reach investors because of an inefficient and error-prone collection system.

Underwriters say the data vacuum is hampering the municipal market, especially as they attempt to move into the booming venue of online trading, which could lower transaction costs...

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