There has been considerable discussion recently about the Utah Healthcare Coalition and what the coalition is hoping to accomplish to improve the delivery of health care in Utah. However, there is a critical issue at stake. While Roger Ball is requesting more transparency in the delivery of health care in Utah, he and the coalition are not willing to provide the same information about themselves.

Mr. Ball claims that the coalition is not obligated to disclose information about its board and coalition members or its sources and amount of funding. The coalition has filed with the IRS as a 501(c)(4) tax-exempt social welfare organization, which "must operate primarily to further the common good and general welfare of the people of the community." A primary obligation of all types of nonprofit organizations is to be transparent in their own activities. Therefore, the IRS requires all tax-exempt organizations to disclose their boards of directors, their financial position and total funds raised.

Everyone should be concerned that a group seeking to influence public health policies is unwilling to make disclosures about its own activities and finances. In today's environment of increased oversight, such organizations' activities need to be beyond reproach and publicly available.

The Utah Nonprofits Association encourages organizations to provide necessary information to the public on a timely basis. In fact, the Utah Nonprofit Association's Standards of Ethics emphasize nonprofit transparency. These standards state, "As nonprofit organizations we provide truthful information about our missions, program activities, use of donations and finances."

I hope that in the interest of the greater community and in the true spirit of nonprofit accountability, that the Utah Healthcare Coalition, which is calling for more transparency from health care providers, changes its current attitude of secrecy.

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Diane Hartz Warsoff is the executive director of the Utah Nonprofits Association.