clean bill of health

noun

1. a certificate of health attesting the lack of a contagious disease, as on a ship.
2. an assurance, as by a doctor, that one is in good health.
3. Also clean bill. an assurance, especially an official verdict by a committee, that a group or an individual has proved, under investigation, to be morally sound, fit for office, etc.

clean bill of health

1. To “get a clean bill of health” is to be told by some authoritative source, generally a doctor, that one is perfectly healthy. The phrase is sometimes used figuratively to indicate that a person or organization has been found free of any sort of irregularity: “After looking into her financial background, the Senate gave the nominee a clean bill of health.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of clean bill of health¹

First recorded in 1850–55

Idioms and Phrases

A report confirming the absence of fault or guilt in a person or thing, as in Jeff checked every component and gave the computer a clean bill of health , or He had a foolproof alibi so the police had to give him a clean bill of health . This term comes from a 17th-century practice of requiring ships to produce a medical document ( bill ) attesting to the absence of infectious disease on board before landing.

Example Sentences

But whether USC will have a clean bill of health by then remains to be seen.

From Los Angeles Times

She steadily improved and within a year got a clean bill of health.

From Science Magazine

"We haven't given Israel a clean bill of health - Israel's performance on aid has not been good enough."

From BBC

But she said doctors can’t provide patients with “an everything looks good’ or a clean bill of health off of an ultrasound at 10 weeks.”

From Seattle Times

Wagner said these early ultrasounds can’t provide the assurance patients are looking for because “you can’t give somebody an ‘everything looks good’ or a clean bill of health off of an ultrasound at 10 weeks.”

From Seattle Times