Manipulating Behavior: Defining the Ethical Limits of Behavioral Contracting in the Healthcare Setting

Abstract

Healthcare providers occasionally implement contracts with their patients in order to encourage certain behavioral patterns. These contracts lay out a set of required or prohibited behaviors to which the patient then agrees to adhere. For example, pain management physicians who regularly utilize opioids to alleviate chronic pain might draw up a contract that dictates strict dosing guidelines and other requirements. The patient agrees to adhere to the requirements while knowing that non-adherence might result in a termination of therapy.