Managing impossible missions: ethical quandaries and ethical solutions

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Medical Ethics
• Health Law

Background:

• Healthcare financial managers encounter daily ethical and practical conflicts.
• Organizations must comply with numerous, often conflicting, laws and regulations.
• Navigating these regulations presents significant challenges to ethical practice.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the ethical and practical conflicts faced by healthcare financial managers.
• To analyze specific regulations, including the 72-hour rule, safe harbor provisions, and the False Claims Act.
• To assert the ethical duty of financial managers to oppose problematic laws.

Main Methods:

• Review of legal interpretations of the False Claims Act.
• Examination of the 72-hour rule and safe harbor provisions.
• Analysis based on healthcare codes of ethics and ethical theories.

Main Results:

• The 72-hour rule, safe harbor provisions, and False Claims Act present complex compliance challenges.
• Determining the ethically correct course of action is often unclear.
• Existing laws and regulations can place organizations in untenable legal and ethical positions.

Conclusions:

• Healthcare financial managers have an ethical obligation to challenge laws and regulations that create untenable situations.
• Ethical frameworks support opposition to regulations that conflict with organizational integrity.
• Proactive engagement with and opposition to problematic regulations are essential for ethical healthcare finance.