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Accounting Ethics in Healthcare

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Accounting Ethics in Healthcare

HCS/405

Dr. LaTrina Frazier

Accounting Ethics in Healthcare

The four goals of good healthcare are to relieve symptoms, cure disease, prolong life and improve quality of life. Access to healthcare has been a perpetual challenge to healthcare providers who must take into account important factors such as equity, efficiency and effectiveness (Maharaj & Paul, Jul 2011, 98)
Your customers expect to receive quality medical care at your medical clinics and/or hospitals. They also expect to receive fair and ethical treatment from the staff. This include the accurate and timely billing for services. The non-clinical team is responsible for coding and billing the products and services provided to our customer during their visit. This back office process is seen as part of the overall service provided by your facility. At the end of the day a health care businesses first priority is to provide the best quality service possible to its patients. Keeping the welfare of your patients as the priority leads to good decisions, this is definitely true in any healthcare business. With all of the current financial challenges in our economy, that has reduced reimbursements and add to this the fears of the healthcare reforms. Hospitals are being challenged on all sides, and they need to be able to count on having ethical business partners and employees to help them continue to deliver the highest quality care.

As employees in any type of business organization, we have the integral part in preserving our shared corporate integrity. Also, we have the responsibility for safeguarding the ethical business reputation of our specific groups. So, we must constantly show our overall and complete commitment to providing ethical and transparent business practices. Most individuals and businesses know to avoid outright conflicts of interest and unethical business practices. However it is just as important to avoid the appearance of any unethical practices. The simple appearance of a conflict or a breach of confidence can and will most likely be seen as just as damaging as an actual conflict or breach. Such instances often result in lasting, damage to your businesses reputation. Unintentional, or thoughtless decisions sometimes can be misread. According to the American Institute of CPAs, ethics are made up of three components: independence, integrity and objectivity
Independence requires that your accounting team avoid any conflicts of interest with any of your vendors. An example is when a hospital or a provider pushes specific drugs not solely because it benefits for the patient but for incentive to use the drug.
The integrity component of ethics requires accounting personnel to maintain the appearance of trustworthiness and is closely tied to the objectivity component. Integrity and objectivity require health-care accounting personnel to avoid situations that might appear on a purely superficial level to be a conflict of interest. (Various, 2006-20016). This means health-care accounting personnel should not be involved in consulting or business ventures with or for competing companies or any suppliers or vendors.
General Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) are the common set of accounting principles, standards and procedures that companies use to compile their financial statements. GAAP, is the customarily accepted ways of recording and reporting accounting information. Each organization may operate differently but all have to follow by set guidelines within the organizations community, state and at the federal level (Investopedia, 2016).
The accounting and financial team in a health care organization work with all patient, vendor, and company financial information. As financial professionals they have access to a various personal information. This information includes the names and contact information for employees, also financial information from vendors that provide services to your organization. Ethical standards require that your financial manager and team keep this information private except for court ordered disclosure. According to the Association for Accountants and Financial Professionals in Business, financial professionals also must not use this information to gain "unethical or illegal advantage." (Hatcher, Jun 13, 2012)
Corporate fraud and abuse includes these examples from Priority Health Charging Priority Health for services that were not provided to a Priority Health member. Charging twice for the same service Getting "kickback" payments from hospitals or specialists for referring patients to them. Misrepresenting what services were provided the patient, or the patient's condition or diagnosis, or the identity of the health care provider or patient.
While managing in a healthcare organization, the most important issue with the services provided is the patient’s overall satisfaction. Accomplishing those goals while tasking your accounting team to operate the organizations financial processes ethically and with precision. Successfully doing these things, will ensure that your health care organization is operating to its maximum potential, while maintaining, cost efficiency.
Hatcher, J. (Jun 13, 2012, Jun 13, 2012 Jun 13, 2012). Bringing ethics and integrity into focus . Retrieved from HEALTHCARE FINANCE: http://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/news/bringing-ethics-and-integrity-focus
Investopedia. (2016, April 10). Retrieved from investopedia.com: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/gaap.asp
Johnson, K. W. (2000-2015). A Prescription for Integrating Applied Ethics. Las Vegas, NV: Ethics & Policy Integration Centre. Retrieved from http://www.epic-online.net/integration_social_responsibility.htm: http://www.epic-online.net/integration_social_responsibility.htm
Maharaj, S. R., & Paul, T. J. (Jul 2011, 98). Ethical Issues in Healthcare Financing. West Indian Medical Journal;, Vol. 60 Issue 4, p4.
Staff. (2046). Fraud & abuse examples: Examples of fraud by health care providers. Retrieved from Priority Health: http://www.priorityhealth.com/member/contact-us/report-fraud/examples
Various. (2006-20016). AICPA Code of Professional Conduct . Retrieved from American Institute of CPA: http://www.aicpa.org/Research/Standards/CodeofConduct/Pages/default.aspx

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