Carolinas HealthCare System, the second-largest public hospital system in the country and based in Charlotte, N.C., recently had its non-profit status and transparency questioned as county officials said it behaves more like a private entity than a government-owned organization, according to a Charlotte Observer report.
Mecklenburg County Manager Harry Jones and several other county commissioners said Carolinas does not give the public much say in its decisions despite the fact it is a non-profit, public agency — Carolinas chooses its own board, has a political action committee and holds quarterly board meetings at inconvenient times without public invitation, according to the report.
"Considering the many benefits [Carolinas] receives by being a governmental, not-for-profit, there is a reasonable expectation that the public would have a say-so in the policy making of that organization," said County Commissioner Chairman Harold Cogdell.
In response, hospital officials said the current organization structure has worked "extremely well" despite the complaints and probes. "The North Carolina General Assembly, in 1943, recognized that the hospital authority structure, which removes hospital governance from local politics, would provide the stability and structure to foster a strong hospital and quality healthcare," Carolinas officials wrote in a prepared statement.
Non-profit hospital systems like Carolinas have been in the limelight the past several months over their roles in the communities they serve. A News & Observer report in April found that many non-profit hospitals in the state have been recording significantly higher profits than providing charity care. North Carolina Gov. Bev Perdue has also called for new policies to make hospital charity care procedures and general price information more transparent and readily available.
Mecklenburg County Manager Harry Jones and several other county commissioners said Carolinas does not give the public much say in its decisions despite the fact it is a non-profit, public agency — Carolinas chooses its own board, has a political action committee and holds quarterly board meetings at inconvenient times without public invitation, according to the report.
"Considering the many benefits [Carolinas] receives by being a governmental, not-for-profit, there is a reasonable expectation that the public would have a say-so in the policy making of that organization," said County Commissioner Chairman Harold Cogdell.
In response, hospital officials said the current organization structure has worked "extremely well" despite the complaints and probes. "The North Carolina General Assembly, in 1943, recognized that the hospital authority structure, which removes hospital governance from local politics, would provide the stability and structure to foster a strong hospital and quality healthcare," Carolinas officials wrote in a prepared statement.
Non-profit hospital systems like Carolinas have been in the limelight the past several months over their roles in the communities they serve. A News & Observer report in April found that many non-profit hospitals in the state have been recording significantly higher profits than providing charity care. North Carolina Gov. Bev Perdue has also called for new policies to make hospital charity care procedures and general price information more transparent and readily available.
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