There seem to be two consistent complaints from the doctors who oppose online consumer ratings for the healthcare community: 1. That online sites are anonymous and 2. That there’s no accountability to ensure the posted information is accurate.

I beg to differ – at least where Angie’s List is concerned. We’ve been collecting consumer ratings for 14 years now. We know a thing or two about fairness and accuracy and we invest a lot to keep our reports as honest, fair and accurate as possible.

1. We don't allow anonymous reviews.
2. Members are held responsible for accurately reporting their experiences. We don't edit reports, but we closely monitor them to be sure they meet guidelines.
3. Service providers can't put themselves on the List -- only a member can do that.
4. We use both technological and human monitoring to catch attempts to game the system, and we take action against guideline violators.
5. We notify providers the first time a member reports on them and offer – free of charge -- to continue notifying them to any future reports so they know what's being said about them.
6. We also encourage providers to respond either on our List or directly to members.

I was intrigued by an editorial published in the Houston Chronicle over the weekend. The doctors make some great points, but they apparently don’t know that Angie’s List is already doing it right.