Question

1.      Discuss all of the sources of law that regulate the delivery of health care.

Answer 1

In US Federal, state and local regulatory agencies often ascertain rules and regulations for the health care industry and their compliance is obligatory and compulsory. Whereas there are other accreditation agencies which necessitate for voluntary participation but are still essential because they grant rankings or certification of quality to ensure health care establishments endorse and preserve quality health care.

Office of Health Care Quality (OHCQ) is the agency within the Department of Health & Mental Hygiene which is responsible to examine and evaluate the quality of care in Maryland’s health care and society residential programs. OHCQ licenses and certifies the bulk of the state’s health care services based on state and federal policies that provides the minimum standards for provision of care and carries out appropriate surveys to establish compliance.

Center for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) is responsible for regulations correlated directly with the health care system. It offers government subsidized medical treatment through numerous programs such as Medicare for the older and disabled people, Medicaid for low earning individuals and families and State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) for health insurance coverage for children below the age of 19 years.

CMS is also accountable for ascertaining observance and conformity with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) which functions towards lessening expenses while taking care of patients and offering enhanced medical care and thus it was integrated with an objective to better the competencies and usefulness of the health care system.

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) established under US Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) facilitates to perform research related activities intended towards enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of health care services, lessening health care expenses, preserving patient safety and avoiding medical errors.

Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations (JCAHO) works towards ensuring that health Care industries provide quality care by implementing effective use of systems to assess and examine the health care services and are accordingly given scores which in fact is considered while determining the compensation and settlement from Medicare.

National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) was established in the year 1991 and is indulged in ascertaining the quality of managed care plans whereas Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) facilitates to assess and evaluate public health and accordingly cautions of probable health threats from infectious diseases.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is a federal regulatory agency which is accountable for scheming the protection and efficiency of nations medicine supply whereas US agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) facilitates to examine and regulate the impacts of hazardous materials on public health and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established to safeguard human health and environment through framing and implementing effective regulations based on policies passed by Congress.