The Attorney General\u2019s Office has determined that the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. board has no legal authority over the credentialing of medical staff for the public hospital.<\/p>\n
Attorney General Joey San Nicolas made this clear in his May 27 opinion in response to a question from CHCC CEO Esther L. Mu\u00f1a, who received a no-confidence vote from majority of board members due to a host of issues, including her inaction on Board Resolution 2014-02, which directed her to issue within 10 days a 90-day medical privilege to Dr. Grant Walker or show cause why she should not do so.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. The board of trustees does not have the authority to issue a resolution which directs the CEO to make a decision concerning the credentialing of a physician; the board\u2019s role with respect to this matter may only be advisory,\u201d said San Nicolas in his two-page opinion issued on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The opinion further states that the \u201cboard\u2019s role is limited to advising the CEO\u201d only.<\/p>\n
According to the San Nicolas, Public Law 16-51 provides that the board may periodically issue non-binding advisory recommendations to the CEO. <\/p>\n
With respect to the corporation\u2019s finances and management, he reiterated that the board\u2019s role is no more than advisory.<\/p>\n
Citing the law that created the corporation, San Nicolas said the CHCC board has only a few exceptions as an advisory body and these include strategic planning, recruitment and retention of qualified CEO, credentialing of medical staff, and ensuring the highest possible quality of care.<\/p>\n
But San Nicolas said this \u201cexception\u201d provision should not be mistaken that the CHCC board has governing power.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis provision cannot be construed to imply that the board has a governing, non-advisory role with respect to these four areas of concern. Public Law 16-51 explicitly provides that role with regards to management of hospital, which would include credentialing of hospital medical staff, is merely advisory,\u201d added San Nicolas.<\/p>\n
Narrow interpretation<\/p>\n
When asked for comments yesterday, CHCC board chair Joaquin Torres said the AG\u2019s opinion is a \u201cvery narrow interpretation\u201d of the law.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was handed this afternoon a very narrow interpretation of Public Law 16-51 by the Attorney General. It appears that the opinion focused on supporting the position taken earlier by one of its staff and ignored other relevant provisions of the law that may not tend to support that position. But this is not what Board Resolution 2014-02 is about,\u201d he told Saipan Tribune.<\/p>\n
According to Torres, the resolution, \u201cwhen or if read in context, is not about who has authority over credentialing of the medical staff but about due process.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe resolution was about ensuring that government, in this case the governing body, treats individuals fairly and does not abuse its power by acting against its citizens in an arbitrary, oppressive, or capricious manner,\u201d added Torres.<\/p>\n
The CHCC board, by a 4-2 vote, adopted the resolution on April 23 after determining that Dr. Walker was not accorded any hearing or due process in his case, which majority of trustees believed is against the credentialing policy of the organization.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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