WAC 365-18-040   Conflicts of interest.  (1) All ombudsmen shall be free from conflicts of interests, including:

     (a) No ombudsman shall be or have been employed by or participated in the management of any long-term care facility, or have or have had the right to receive remuneration from a long-term care facility, including work as a paid consultant or independent contractor, currently or within the past year;

     (b) No ombudsman or member of his or her immediate family shall have, or have had within the past year, any pecuniary interest in a long-term care facility or a long-term care service;

     (c) No ombudsman shall have a direct involvement in the licensing, certification, or regulation of a long-term care facility or of a long-term care service during his or her tenure as an ombudsman or within the past year;

     (d) No ombudsman shall be assigned to or work in a long-term care facility in which the ombudsman or a member of his/her immediate family resides;

     (e) No ombudsman shall solicit or be the beneficiary of gifts, money or estate property from residents in any facility in which he or she has served or is serving as ombudsman. This subsection shall not prohibit an ombudsman from receiving gifts, money, or estate property from a resident who is a relative of the ombudsman;

     (f) No ombudsman may work for an agency or entity in which the ombudsman has direct personal involvement in the provision or establishment of involuntary services or in the involuntary commitment of a resident.

     (2) No individual, or immediate family member of such an individual, who is involved in the designation or removal of the state ombudsman, or the designation or revocation of the contractor or subcontractors, or who administers or oversees the contractor's or subcontractor's contract, may be an official or employee of any agency or organization that conducts the licensing, certification, or regulation of long-term care facilities, or that owns, operates, or manages such facilities.



[Statutory Authority: Chapter 43.190 RCW. 02-17-018, § 365-18-040, filed 8/9/02, effective 9/9/02. Statutory Authority: Chapter 43.190 RCW and Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C., 3001 et seq., as amended). 00-09-060, § 365-18-040, filed 4/17/00, effective 5/18/00.]