According to a posting on the Florida Medical Association PAC web site ( see attached) the FMA PAC is endorsing endorsing Rick Scott's candidacy as Governor for our State of Florida!!???
Even though I already lowered my expectation regarding FMA's actions and politics I am still surprised that the leadership of such an organization is willing to sacrifice its principles on the altar of political correctness. Sadly, ideology trumped rational thought and consideration. Its hard to believe that the FMA political leadership has omitted considering the following facts in their deliberation process. These facts are available for anyone to read on multiple web sites and were summarized by the Miami Herald in an article published on June 11th, 2010 http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/06/11/v-print/1674327/was-candidate-involved-in-us-healthcare.html, entitled "Was candidate Rick Scott Involved in US Healthcare Scam."
In the article the author states that:
"Scott started what was first Columbia in the spring of 1987, purchasing two El Paso, Texas, hospitals. He quickly grew the company by purchasing more hospitals. A hospital network created efficiencies. Efficiencies created profits.
In 1994, Scott's Columbia purchased Tennessee-headquartered HCA and its 100 hospitals, and merged the companies. When Scott resigned as CEO in 1997, Columbia/HCA had grown to more than 340 hospitals, 135 surgery centers and 550 home health locations in 37 states and two foreign countries, Scott's campaign says. The company employed more than 285,000 people.
Now about Scott's departure in 1997. That year, federal agents went public with an investigation into the company, first seizing records from four El Paso-area hospitals and then expanding across the country. In time it became apparent that the investigation focused on whether Columbia/HCA bilked Medicare and Medicaid.
Scott resigned as CEO in July 1997, less than four months after the inquiry became public and before the depth of the investigation became clear. Company executives said that had Scott remained CEO, the entire chain could have been in jeopardy.
At issue, Scott says, is that he wanted to fight the federal government's accusations. The corporate board of the publicly traded company wanted to settle. And settle Columbia/HCA did.
In December 2000, the U.S. Justice Department announced what it called the largest government fraud settlement in U.S. history when Columbia/HCA agreed to pay $840 million in criminal fines and civil damages and penalties.
Among the revelations from the 2000 settlement, all of which apply to the time Scott was CEO:
• Columbia billed Medicare, Medicaid and other federal programs for tests that were not necessary or ordered by physicians.
• The company attached false diagnosis codes to patient records to increase reimbursement to the hospitals.
• The company illegally claimed nonreimbursable marketing and advertising costs as community education.
• Columbia billed the government for home health care visits for patients who did not qualify to receive them.
The government settled a second series of claims with Columbia/HCA in 2002 for an additional $881 million. The total fine: $1.7 billion."
Furthermore the article continues:
"As part of the 2000 settlement, Columbia/HCA agreed to plead guilty to at least 14 corporate felonies. A corporate felony comes with financial penalties but not jail time, since a corporation can't be sent to prison. Among the 14 felonies, Columbia/HCA pleaded guilty to three counts of conspiracy to defraud the United States.
Also, four Florida-based Columbia/HCA executives were indicted. Two were convicted of defrauding Medicare in 1999 and were sentenced to prison, only to have those convictions overturned on appeal. A third executive was acquitted. A jury failed to reach a verdict on the fourth.
Was Scott close to going to prison for his part in the case? It appears not at all.
The former CEO was never indicted and was never questioned in the case, he says. He may have been a target of the investigation -- an ABC News report from 1997 says he was -- but that never translated into charges."
Let's boil this down.
Was Scott running Columbia/HCA when it found itself at the center of a massive federal investigation? Yes.
Did the company pay a record $1.7 billion in government penalties and fines? Yes.
And as we checked in this item, did his former company commit fraud? Yes, it pleaded guilty to fraud charges as part of a settlement.
The million-dollar question is: How much of the blame ultimately falls on Scott? That's an answer we can't provide.
Scott was in charge, so he bears some responsibility and has said so. But there has yet to come to light any detail of how much he knew, and when he knew it. Though that won't keep us from looking.
What did Rick Scott had to say about all that? Either he pleaded the Fifth Amendment, or claims that he did not know what was going on in his own company. I ask myself just one question: How on earth can anyone entrust the keys to the Governors' office to Rick Scott?
Maybe we should admire the Chutzpah (audacity) of Rick Scott and those who endorse his candidacy?
Maybe its time that in light of these facts doctors should reconsider their support for the FMA's endorsement because this time their leadership went too far.
Yours
Bernd
Attachment: FMA PAC web site http://www.fmaonline.org/Layout_1Column.aspx?pageid=2580
FMA PAC – General Election Endorsements
Statewide Races
Governor – Rick Scott
Attorney General – Pam Bondi
Chief Financial Officer - Jeff Atwater
Commissioner of Agriculture - Adam Putnam
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