Law BBS Assignment #1: JCAHO as an Independent Agency

Independent Agency: JCAHO
Name:
Institutional Affiliation:

Independent Agency: JCAHO
1. JCAHO as an independent agency
JCAHO is an ellipsis that stand for Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. Tracing its establishment in 1952, it is the largest and the oldest healthcare accrediting body that sets healthcare standards in the US. The total number of healthcare amenities and programs that are evaluated and accredited by JCAHO is 21, 000 within the US (JCAHO, 2016). The aim of the agency is to assess the healthcare facilities to ensure that they meet set standards that assure the provision of effective, safe and high quality healthcare services to the public. The JCAHO accreditation is not a mandatory requirement for any health organization, but JCAHO-accredited health facilities attain a good public image on the successful implementation of a set of established quality control health care standards. JCAHO is a non-profit and independent body whose stakeholders comprises of private sector individuals who sets and maintain medical standards upon which willing health facilities can be evaluated and accredited based on the standards. Despite many organizations relying on the accreditation by JCAHO to attain the public image on meeting health standards, the body has no legal enforcement power and is not connected to any government regulatory agency.
JCAHO is an independent body. According to Bass (2014), the difference between independent and dependent agencies regards government control and level of involvement, funding, jurisdiction, authority and functional traits. Knowing whether an organization is dependent or independent involve having an understanding of the above characteristics. While dependent agencies rely on government’s funding, independent bodies like JCAHO relies on other sources of funds. Since there is no reliance on the government, consequently they are not under the government control (Bass, 2014). Structurally, independent agencies are governed by a board or a commission while the president exercises powers on the governing of a dependent agency regarding the appointment of heads of agencies. Although the government has certain regulations on the independent agencies, the degree of control is the differentiating factor. According to Cromwell (2014), tax exemption is another differentiating factor between dependent and independent agencies. JCAHO, for example, have their taxes exempted since they have been granted a non-profit status. Dependent organizations are taxed due to government-imposed monetary conditions.
2. JCAHO’s Mission and Functions
JCAHO’s mission is to ensure effective collaboration with stakeholders so that continuous improvement of public health care is achieved through evaluation and accreditation of healthcare facilities to inspire the excellent provision of safe health care of the highest value and quality to the general public. JCAHO’s objective statement is to provide the most reliable, high-valued health care experience across all medical settings in the US. Since its conception in 1951, JCAHO has become a national symbol that shows the commitment of a healthcare organization in ...