It’s not the two-bit petty criminal whose causing the real danger in our lives and neighborhoods, it’s the Corporate criminals. The guys in suits, two steps removed from the people they are inflicting life threatening damage to that are wrecking havoc on our lives and our nation.
Corporate crime is often violent crime with very real victims. Mokhiber points out that while the FBI estimates that 16,000 Americans are murdered every year “56,000 Americans die every year on the job or from occupational diseases such as black lung and asbestosis while tens of thousands of other Americans fall victim to the silent violence of pollution, contaminated foods, hazardous consumer products, and hospital malpractice.” -Gene Racz
Literally thousands of people dying because of purposeful oversight and ignorance by those whose only concern is often the bottom line. And your probably thinking, “It’s a good thing are government is taking care of them,” wondering how many CEOs will come to the same fate as Skilling and Lay (of Enron). And then you find out this tidbit:
The New York Times recently reported that the government has basically stopped prosecuting corporations for crimes despite the fact that costs of corporate crime far outweighs street crime. Eric Lichtblau, writing for the Times, noted that during the last three years, the U.S. Justice Department has put off prosecuting more than 50 corporations on charges ranging from bribery to fraud. Instead, it has been entering into so-called deferred prosecution agreements and non-prosecution agreements, in which companies are allowed to pay fines and hire monitors to watch over them.
Noware corrupt, but simply that it’s a terrible statement about our society that those with money are allowed to keep stealing from the rest of us and not be prosecuted for it. Seriously, they are stealing from all of us, not only on the product side of things but also in our tax dollars:
Health-care fraud alone, he said, costs Americans $100 billion to $400 billion a year. The taxpayer bill to clean up the savings and loan fraud was anywhere from $300 billion to $500 billion.
Not only do we need to speak up to our Justice Department about how this is unjust and unfair, but this knowledge should change and challenge the way you talk about and think about criminals. You should either conjure up the same disgust and suspicion of CEO’s as you currently have of street criminals and those you think look like criminals, or you should try and balance your perspective on both to a more understanding, but equally just perspective on both.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Cato Institute puts health care fraud at over $60 billion per year
Fraud, and certainly abuse
The Cato Institute gets its knickers in a knot about Medicare fraud, citing a report that puts health care fraud at over $60 billion per year.Let's put this number in a bit of perspective:
Medicare actually lost about seven cents of every dollar spent to fraud, waste and mistakes in 1998, government auditors said earlier this month.
That amounts to more than $12 billion -- but it's only about half of what was lost by the government's health insurance program for the elderly and disabled just two years ago.
Yep, a fivefold increase in less than a decade.
Let's see, what happened in that decade?
Oh, yes, the administrators at the top changed.
You don't send Republicans to do a man's job.
Update: Medicare reduces costs for providers, it turns out. I guess the Bush League couldn't fix that.
The Cato Institute gets its knickers in a knot about Medicare fraud, citing a report that puts health care fraud at over $60 billion per year.Let's put this number in a bit of perspective:
Medicare actually lost about seven cents of every dollar spent to fraud, waste and mistakes in 1998, government auditors said earlier this month.
That amounts to more than $12 billion -- but it's only about half of what was lost by the government's health insurance program for the elderly and disabled just two years ago.
Yep, a fivefold increase in less than a decade.
Let's see, what happened in that decade?
Oh, yes, the administrators at the top changed.
You don't send Republicans to do a man's job.
Update: Medicare reduces costs for providers, it turns out. I guess the Bush League couldn't fix that.
How A Corrupt "Bushie" Operates in Alabama
One couple's encounter with corrupt judges, slimy lawyers, and incompetent prosecutors in Alabama. . . and how you can avoid being cheated by the vermin who make a mockery of our justice system.
Monday, June 16, 2008
How A Corrupt "Bushie" Operates in Alabama
Alice Martin, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Alabama and the first prosecutor to go after former Democratic Governor Don Siegelman, stepped in some serious doo-doo in a recent post, and we are going to show you why.
But before we do that, let's review what we've learned in our "Malice of Alice" series.
First, we provide background on my attempts to tell Martin about judicial corruption I had witnessed by Republican judges in Alabama state courts and an attorney with family ties to Karl Rove and the Bush Administration.
Then, we show how Martin sent my allegations to a most curious place for investigation--the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which does not even have jurisdiction to investigate the kinds of crimes I was alleging.
Then, we present Martin's explanation for sending my allegations to the postal inspection service.
Now, we're about to show you how and why Martin has stepped in some serious doo-doo.
But first, let me rephrase that statement: If we ever actually have an honest Department of Justice in our lifetimes, Alice Martin has stepped in serious doo-doo. On the other hand, if the DOJ continues to be run by the Alberto Gonzalezes and Michael Mukaseys of the world, Martin doesn't have a thing to worry about.
As Don Siegelman would say, she's got an "umbrella of protection" to keep her out of harm's way.
But regardless of whether the DOJ ever does anything about it or not, Legal Schnauzer readers are going to know the truth: Alice Martin, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Alabama, undoubtedly, blatantly, and corruptly practices political prosecution.
And how does she do it? By sending citizen complaints to the wrong investigative agency and then lying to the citizen about it.
How do we know that Alice Martin lied to us?
Remember the fourth paragraph of my second snail-mail letter to Martin:
I allege, and an investigation will show, that the individuals noted below conspired to commit mail and wire fraud, depriving the citizens of Alabama of their intangible right to honest services under 18 U.S. Code 1346. Because the limitations period begins to run after the last overt act in furtherance of the main goals of a conspiracy (United States v. Fletcher, 928 F.2d 495), all of these acts fall within the five-year mail fraud statute of limitations.
It could not have been more clear: This was about honest-services mail fraud, which is covered under 18 U.S. Code 1346. This is fraud that involves public corruption, and it is distinct from consumer mail fraud, which is covered under other statutes.
But Alice Martin, like the vast majority of lawyers I've encountered, thinks regular citizens are stupid. She figured she could pull one over on me because I don't have J.D. after my name.
Well, Martin is in for a surprise. Because I'm about to use her own words to show that she is a corrupt public official--probably far more corrupt than anyone she has ever investigated.
Just how corrupt, and brazen, is Alice Martin. Recall in her previous e-mail that she said it was "standard procedure" for a complaint alleging honest-services mail fraud to go to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
So being the inquisitive Schnauzer that I am, I thought to myself, "I wonder if that's how it was done in the Don Siegelman cases.?"
I turned initially to the first Siegelman case, the one Martin brought in the Northern District of Alabama. That case, however, was not of much help. It involved Tuscaloosa physician Phillip Bobo and the primary allegations were for conspiracy, health care fraud, and program fraud. Honest-services mail fraud was not a factor.
So I turned to the second Siegelman case, the one Leura Canary brought in the Middle District of Alabama. That's the case in which Siegelman and former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy were convicted, and the primary charges were racketeering, bribery, extortion, conspiracy, and honest-services mail and wire fraud.
In the end, roughly two-thirds of the charges against Siegelman and Scrushy involved honest-services mail fraud. So this was the perfect case to check and see if Alice Martin was telling us the truth.
And what do we learn? Well, consider the last paragraph of the press release (dated October 26, 2005) about the indictment:
The indictment is the result of a joint investigation initiated by federal and state authorities in early 2001 into numerous alleged improprieties in the Siegelman administration. The federal case is being prosecuted by Louis V. Franklin, Sr., the Acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama in this case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephen P. Feaga and J.B. Perrine; Trial Attorney Richard Pilger of the Public Integrity Section of the Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice, which is headed by Section Chief Noel L. Hillman; and Assistant Attorney General Joseph Fitzpatrick for the State of Alabama, who is also cross-designated as a Special Assistant United States Attorney for this case. The investigation was conducted jointly by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and agents from the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, with assistance from the Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General.
The last paragraph tells us who conducted the investigation. Do you see any mention of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service? I don't either.
So is it "standard procedure," as Alice Martin had told us, to have the U.S. Postal Inspection Service lead an investigation involving honest-services mail fraud?
Alice Martin's own press release tells us it is not. Alice Martin's own press release proves conclusively that Alice Martin is a corrupt U.S. attorney--one who intentionally sends criminal complaints to the wrong investigative agency and then lies to the public about it.
And our paper trail on Alice Martin is just beginning.
(To be continued)
http://legalschnauzer.blogspot.com/2008/06/alice-martin-how-corrupt-bushie.html
Monday, June 16, 2008
How A Corrupt "Bushie" Operates in Alabama
Alice Martin, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Alabama and the first prosecutor to go after former Democratic Governor Don Siegelman, stepped in some serious doo-doo in a recent post, and we are going to show you why.
But before we do that, let's review what we've learned in our "Malice of Alice" series.
First, we provide background on my attempts to tell Martin about judicial corruption I had witnessed by Republican judges in Alabama state courts and an attorney with family ties to Karl Rove and the Bush Administration.
Then, we show how Martin sent my allegations to a most curious place for investigation--the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which does not even have jurisdiction to investigate the kinds of crimes I was alleging.
Then, we present Martin's explanation for sending my allegations to the postal inspection service.
Now, we're about to show you how and why Martin has stepped in some serious doo-doo.
But first, let me rephrase that statement: If we ever actually have an honest Department of Justice in our lifetimes, Alice Martin has stepped in serious doo-doo. On the other hand, if the DOJ continues to be run by the Alberto Gonzalezes and Michael Mukaseys of the world, Martin doesn't have a thing to worry about.
As Don Siegelman would say, she's got an "umbrella of protection" to keep her out of harm's way.
But regardless of whether the DOJ ever does anything about it or not, Legal Schnauzer readers are going to know the truth: Alice Martin, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Alabama, undoubtedly, blatantly, and corruptly practices political prosecution.
And how does she do it? By sending citizen complaints to the wrong investigative agency and then lying to the citizen about it.
How do we know that Alice Martin lied to us?
Remember the fourth paragraph of my second snail-mail letter to Martin:
I allege, and an investigation will show, that the individuals noted below conspired to commit mail and wire fraud, depriving the citizens of Alabama of their intangible right to honest services under 18 U.S. Code 1346. Because the limitations period begins to run after the last overt act in furtherance of the main goals of a conspiracy (United States v. Fletcher, 928 F.2d 495), all of these acts fall within the five-year mail fraud statute of limitations.
It could not have been more clear: This was about honest-services mail fraud, which is covered under 18 U.S. Code 1346. This is fraud that involves public corruption, and it is distinct from consumer mail fraud, which is covered under other statutes.
But Alice Martin, like the vast majority of lawyers I've encountered, thinks regular citizens are stupid. She figured she could pull one over on me because I don't have J.D. after my name.
Well, Martin is in for a surprise. Because I'm about to use her own words to show that she is a corrupt public official--probably far more corrupt than anyone she has ever investigated.
Just how corrupt, and brazen, is Alice Martin. Recall in her previous e-mail that she said it was "standard procedure" for a complaint alleging honest-services mail fraud to go to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
So being the inquisitive Schnauzer that I am, I thought to myself, "I wonder if that's how it was done in the Don Siegelman cases.?"
I turned initially to the first Siegelman case, the one Martin brought in the Northern District of Alabama. That case, however, was not of much help. It involved Tuscaloosa physician Phillip Bobo and the primary allegations were for conspiracy, health care fraud, and program fraud. Honest-services mail fraud was not a factor.
So I turned to the second Siegelman case, the one Leura Canary brought in the Middle District of Alabama. That's the case in which Siegelman and former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy were convicted, and the primary charges were racketeering, bribery, extortion, conspiracy, and honest-services mail and wire fraud.
In the end, roughly two-thirds of the charges against Siegelman and Scrushy involved honest-services mail fraud. So this was the perfect case to check and see if Alice Martin was telling us the truth.
And what do we learn? Well, consider the last paragraph of the press release (dated October 26, 2005) about the indictment:
The indictment is the result of a joint investigation initiated by federal and state authorities in early 2001 into numerous alleged improprieties in the Siegelman administration. The federal case is being prosecuted by Louis V. Franklin, Sr., the Acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama in this case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephen P. Feaga and J.B. Perrine; Trial Attorney Richard Pilger of the Public Integrity Section of the Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice, which is headed by Section Chief Noel L. Hillman; and Assistant Attorney General Joseph Fitzpatrick for the State of Alabama, who is also cross-designated as a Special Assistant United States Attorney for this case. The investigation was conducted jointly by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and agents from the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, with assistance from the Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General.
The last paragraph tells us who conducted the investigation. Do you see any mention of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service? I don't either.
So is it "standard procedure," as Alice Martin had told us, to have the U.S. Postal Inspection Service lead an investigation involving honest-services mail fraud?
Alice Martin's own press release tells us it is not. Alice Martin's own press release proves conclusively that Alice Martin is a corrupt U.S. attorney--one who intentionally sends criminal complaints to the wrong investigative agency and then lies to the public about it.
And our paper trail on Alice Martin is just beginning.
(To be continued)
http://legalschnauzer.blogspot.com/2008/06/alice-martin-how-corrupt-bushie.html
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Nursing home employees doctored records in order to receive Medicaid and Medicare payments for treatment that was never rendered.
Conviction of former Robinson nursing home operator upheld
By Jason Cato
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, June 6, 2008
A federal appeals court today upheld the conviction of the former administrator of a defunct Robinson nursing home on one count of health-care fraud and eight counts of making false statements on health-care matters.
Martha Ann Bell, 62, formerly of West Mifflin, was found guilty in August 2005. U.S. District Judge Terrence F. McVerry sentenced Bell in October 2006 to five years in prison.
Bell operated the Ronald Reagan Atrium I Nursing and Rehabiliation Center on Campbell's Run Road. Nursing home employees doctored records in order to receive Medicaid and Medicare payments for treatment that was never rendered.
Bell is scheduled for release in 2011, according to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. Bell is being held at the Allegheny County Jail pending an upcoming theft trial in state court, where she will face charges that she stole more than $50,000 from an Atrium account for her personal use.
By Jason Cato
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, June 6, 2008
A federal appeals court today upheld the conviction of the former administrator of a defunct Robinson nursing home on one count of health-care fraud and eight counts of making false statements on health-care matters.
Martha Ann Bell, 62, formerly of West Mifflin, was found guilty in August 2005. U.S. District Judge Terrence F. McVerry sentenced Bell in October 2006 to five years in prison.
Bell operated the Ronald Reagan Atrium I Nursing and Rehabiliation Center on Campbell's Run Road. Nursing home employees doctored records in order to receive Medicaid and Medicare payments for treatment that was never rendered.
Bell is scheduled for release in 2011, according to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. Bell is being held at the Allegheny County Jail pending an upcoming theft trial in state court, where she will face charges that she stole more than $50,000 from an Atrium account for her personal use.
Wonder why ambulance rides are so expensive?? ...
News
Release
For Release: May 29, 2008
U.S. Department of Justice
United States Attorney
Northern District of Ohio
William J. Edwards
Acting United States Attorney
Michael L. Collyer
Assistant U.S. Attorney
(216) 622-3744
William J. Edwards, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, announced today the unsealing of four federal indictments charging seven individuals with various health care fraud-related offenses in connection with the transportation of Medicaid beneficiaries in vehicles called ambulettes.
The indictment charges with violations of laws involving mail fraud, wire fraud, health care fraud and conspiracy:
1. ROBERT SHUMAY, owner of Care Bear Transportation, 3615 Superior Avenue, #3104G, Cleveland, Ohio;
2. IVAN BOBAS, owner of Star Safety Transportation, 6216 Tall Oaks Drive, Mentor, Ohio;
3. ALEKSANDR ROTENBAKH, owner of Transit 7 Inc., 996 Professor Road, South Euclid, Ohio;
4. YEVGENIY ROTENBAKH, owner of Transit 7 Inc., 996 Professor Road, South Euclid, Ohio;
5. FATIMA WARE, owner of FW Transport, LLC, 7511 Indiana Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio, and Ware Care Transportation, LLC, 21291 Carol Avenue, Euclid, Ohio;
6. KENYATTA WARE, owner of Ware Care Transportation, LLC, 21291 Carol Avenue, Euclid, Ohio; and
7. ZSAMARA BOOKER, owner of Ware Care Transportation, LLC, 21291 Carol Avenue, Euclid, Ohio.
Robert Shumay is charged with six counts of wire fraud and nine counts of health care fraud. Ivan Bobas is charged with seven counts of mail fraud and nine counts of health care fraud. Aleksandr Rotenbakh is charged with one count of conspiracy, six counts of wire fraud, and ten counts of health care fraud. Yevgeniy Rotenbakh is charged with one count of conspiracy, six counts of wire fraud, and ten counts of health care fraud. Fatima Ware is charged with one count of conspiracy, ten counts of wire fraud, and fifteen counts of health care fraud. Kenyatta Ware is charged with one count of conspiracy, eight counts of wire fraud, and ten counts of health care fraud. Zsamara Booker is charged with one count of conspiracy, eight counts of wire fraud, and ten counts of health care fraud.
Ambulette services contract with the Ohio Medicaid program to transport patients in vehicles known as ambulettes. An ambulette is a specially equipped van designed for wheelchair passengers. Medicaid pays ambulette operators for driving Medicaid beneficiaries to and from Medicaid-covered appointments, so long as: (1) the patient rides in a wheelchair; (2) a medical doctor certifies the need for the wheelchair and ambulette; and (3) the ambulette itself otherwise meets safety specifications.
The defendants in each of these cases are charged with scheming to defraud Medicaid by charging Medicaid for rides of patients who did not use wheelchairs or require the need of wheelchairs.
If convicted, each defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of the Federal Sentencing Guidelines and factors unique to each case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offenses and the characteristics of the violations.
The indictment is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Health and Human Services - Office of Inspector General, and First Assistant Attorney General Thomas Winters’ Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Ohio Attorney General’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael L. Collyer with assistance from Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Constance Nearhood, an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Ohio.
An indictments is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Release
For Release: May 29, 2008
U.S. Department of Justice
United States Attorney
Northern District of Ohio
William J. Edwards
Acting United States Attorney
Michael L. Collyer
Assistant U.S. Attorney
(216) 622-3744
William J. Edwards, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, announced today the unsealing of four federal indictments charging seven individuals with various health care fraud-related offenses in connection with the transportation of Medicaid beneficiaries in vehicles called ambulettes.
The indictment charges with violations of laws involving mail fraud, wire fraud, health care fraud and conspiracy:
1. ROBERT SHUMAY, owner of Care Bear Transportation, 3615 Superior Avenue, #3104G, Cleveland, Ohio;
2. IVAN BOBAS, owner of Star Safety Transportation, 6216 Tall Oaks Drive, Mentor, Ohio;
3. ALEKSANDR ROTENBAKH, owner of Transit 7 Inc., 996 Professor Road, South Euclid, Ohio;
4. YEVGENIY ROTENBAKH, owner of Transit 7 Inc., 996 Professor Road, South Euclid, Ohio;
5. FATIMA WARE, owner of FW Transport, LLC, 7511 Indiana Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio, and Ware Care Transportation, LLC, 21291 Carol Avenue, Euclid, Ohio;
6. KENYATTA WARE, owner of Ware Care Transportation, LLC, 21291 Carol Avenue, Euclid, Ohio; and
7. ZSAMARA BOOKER, owner of Ware Care Transportation, LLC, 21291 Carol Avenue, Euclid, Ohio.
Robert Shumay is charged with six counts of wire fraud and nine counts of health care fraud. Ivan Bobas is charged with seven counts of mail fraud and nine counts of health care fraud. Aleksandr Rotenbakh is charged with one count of conspiracy, six counts of wire fraud, and ten counts of health care fraud. Yevgeniy Rotenbakh is charged with one count of conspiracy, six counts of wire fraud, and ten counts of health care fraud. Fatima Ware is charged with one count of conspiracy, ten counts of wire fraud, and fifteen counts of health care fraud. Kenyatta Ware is charged with one count of conspiracy, eight counts of wire fraud, and ten counts of health care fraud. Zsamara Booker is charged with one count of conspiracy, eight counts of wire fraud, and ten counts of health care fraud.
Ambulette services contract with the Ohio Medicaid program to transport patients in vehicles known as ambulettes. An ambulette is a specially equipped van designed for wheelchair passengers. Medicaid pays ambulette operators for driving Medicaid beneficiaries to and from Medicaid-covered appointments, so long as: (1) the patient rides in a wheelchair; (2) a medical doctor certifies the need for the wheelchair and ambulette; and (3) the ambulette itself otherwise meets safety specifications.
The defendants in each of these cases are charged with scheming to defraud Medicaid by charging Medicaid for rides of patients who did not use wheelchairs or require the need of wheelchairs.
If convicted, each defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of the Federal Sentencing Guidelines and factors unique to each case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offenses and the characteristics of the violations.
The indictment is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Health and Human Services - Office of Inspector General, and First Assistant Attorney General Thomas Winters’ Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Ohio Attorney General’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael L. Collyer with assistance from Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Constance Nearhood, an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Ohio.
An indictments is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
federal appeals court in Denver has reinstated a lawsuit
Nurses demand increase in staffing at Centerpoint
By JULIUS A. KARASH
The Kansas City Star
Nurses at Centerpoint Medical Center in Independence said Thursday that the hospital needs to beef up staffing to ensure patient safety.
Nurses United for Improved Patient Care, a union that represents Centerpoint nurses, said the nurses made their case in a petition to the hospital, which is part of HCA Midwest Health System.
Uriah Magill, an intensive care nurse at Centerpoint, said care suffers when he and his colleagues are forced to look after too many patients at once.
“As the care provider, it is very frustrating and concerning when the patient needs care and we can’t provide that to them because we are overworked and overloaded,” Magill said.
The union noted that Centerpoint scored worst among area hospitals in key patient ratings reported recently by the federal government.
HCA Midwest spokeswoman Sara Smith said Centerpoint is in contract negotiations with Nurses United.
“Unions often use press releases of this nature in an attempt to use leverage in bargaining. Centerpoint is dedicated to quality patient care, and staffing levels are determined based on the needs of our patients on a daily basis,” she said.
Smith acknowledged that Centerpoint needs more nurses than the 300-plus who are currently on staff. She said the hospital is successfully recruiting new nurses amid a nationwide nursing shortage.
HCA Midwest, which is based in Kansas City, is part of Nashville-based HCA Inc.
In a separate matter, a federal appeals court in Denver has reinstated a lawsuit claiming that Wesley Medical Center in Wichita and other HCA hospitals had endangered patients through inadequate medical and nurse staffing.
The case involved patient Joseph Spires, who died at Wesley in 2004. The plaintiffs said HCA had developed a computer software program that led to inadequate staffing at Wesley and other HCA hospitals.
A federal court in Wichita earlier had dismissed the would-be class action lawsuit.
“This case is without merit and is not about patient care,” HCA spokesman Ed Fishbough said Thursday.
To reach Julius A. Karash, call 816-234-4918 or send e-mail to jkarash@kcstar.com.
By JULIUS A. KARASH
The Kansas City Star
Nurses at Centerpoint Medical Center in Independence said Thursday that the hospital needs to beef up staffing to ensure patient safety.
Nurses United for Improved Patient Care, a union that represents Centerpoint nurses, said the nurses made their case in a petition to the hospital, which is part of HCA Midwest Health System.
Uriah Magill, an intensive care nurse at Centerpoint, said care suffers when he and his colleagues are forced to look after too many patients at once.
“As the care provider, it is very frustrating and concerning when the patient needs care and we can’t provide that to them because we are overworked and overloaded,” Magill said.
The union noted that Centerpoint scored worst among area hospitals in key patient ratings reported recently by the federal government.
HCA Midwest spokeswoman Sara Smith said Centerpoint is in contract negotiations with Nurses United.
“Unions often use press releases of this nature in an attempt to use leverage in bargaining. Centerpoint is dedicated to quality patient care, and staffing levels are determined based on the needs of our patients on a daily basis,” she said.
Smith acknowledged that Centerpoint needs more nurses than the 300-plus who are currently on staff. She said the hospital is successfully recruiting new nurses amid a nationwide nursing shortage.
HCA Midwest, which is based in Kansas City, is part of Nashville-based HCA Inc.
In a separate matter, a federal appeals court in Denver has reinstated a lawsuit claiming that Wesley Medical Center in Wichita and other HCA hospitals had endangered patients through inadequate medical and nurse staffing.
The case involved patient Joseph Spires, who died at Wesley in 2004. The plaintiffs said HCA had developed a computer software program that led to inadequate staffing at Wesley and other HCA hospitals.
A federal court in Wichita earlier had dismissed the would-be class action lawsuit.
“This case is without merit and is not about patient care,” HCA spokesman Ed Fishbough said Thursday.
To reach Julius A. Karash, call 816-234-4918 or send e-mail to jkarash@kcstar.com.
Kendall Regional Medical Center and its sister HCA affiliates
Posted on Thursday, June 05, 2008
LAWFUEL - US Attorney News Releases - Three former employees of Kendall Regional Medical Center (“KRMC”), a full-service hospital located in Miami-Dade County, Florida, were charged in an Information filed today with conspiring to defraud the KRMC of nearly $7 million through a sophisticated purchase order scheme, announced R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida and Jonathan I. Solomon, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Miami Field Office. Specifically, the Information charges defendants Joanna Delfel, Victor Garcia, and Sylvia Oramas with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349. If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum term of imprisonment of twenty years.
According to the Information, from 2001 through May 2007, the defendants, working with unindicted co-conspirators who held positions of authority at two medical supply companies, The Pharmed Group, Corp. (“Pharmed”) and Allied Medical Products, Inc. (“AMP”), participated in a fraud scheme in which the defendants entered unauthorized and false purchase orders and delivery verifications into the computerized system used by KRMC for all of its medical supply orders and purchases. These entries made it appear as if almost $7 million in medical supplies had been ordered and delivered to KRMC by Pharmed and AMP. Based on these false purchase orders, KRMC’s parent company, HCA, Inc. (“HCA”), paid Pharmed and AMP the full amount for the false supply orders. To funnel HCA’s payments to the defendants and other uncharged co-conspirators, and to conceal the nature and source of the proceeds, the payments were transferred to two shell corporations, Soho Marketing, Inc. (“SoHo”), and Gator Sports Collectibles, Inc. (“Gator”), controlled by members of the conspiracy. Members of the conspiracy then issued checks from SoHo and Gator to the defendants and other members of the conspiracy and created fraudulent documents to disguise these payments as employee compensation.
Mr. Acosta commended the investigative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Mr. Acosta also acknowledged the cooperative efforts of Kendall Regional Medical Center and its sister HCA affiliates for their assistance in this investigation. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffrey E. Marcus and Ryan K. Stumphauzer.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
LAWFUEL - US Attorney News Releases - Three former employees of Kendall Regional Medical Center (“KRMC”), a full-service hospital located in Miami-Dade County, Florida, were charged in an Information filed today with conspiring to defraud the KRMC of nearly $7 million through a sophisticated purchase order scheme, announced R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida and Jonathan I. Solomon, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Miami Field Office. Specifically, the Information charges defendants Joanna Delfel, Victor Garcia, and Sylvia Oramas with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349. If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum term of imprisonment of twenty years.
According to the Information, from 2001 through May 2007, the defendants, working with unindicted co-conspirators who held positions of authority at two medical supply companies, The Pharmed Group, Corp. (“Pharmed”) and Allied Medical Products, Inc. (“AMP”), participated in a fraud scheme in which the defendants entered unauthorized and false purchase orders and delivery verifications into the computerized system used by KRMC for all of its medical supply orders and purchases. These entries made it appear as if almost $7 million in medical supplies had been ordered and delivered to KRMC by Pharmed and AMP. Based on these false purchase orders, KRMC’s parent company, HCA, Inc. (“HCA”), paid Pharmed and AMP the full amount for the false supply orders. To funnel HCA’s payments to the defendants and other uncharged co-conspirators, and to conceal the nature and source of the proceeds, the payments were transferred to two shell corporations, Soho Marketing, Inc. (“SoHo”), and Gator Sports Collectibles, Inc. (“Gator”), controlled by members of the conspiracy. Members of the conspiracy then issued checks from SoHo and Gator to the defendants and other members of the conspiracy and created fraudulent documents to disguise these payments as employee compensation.
Mr. Acosta commended the investigative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Mr. Acosta also acknowledged the cooperative efforts of Kendall Regional Medical Center and its sister HCA affiliates for their assistance in this investigation. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffrey E. Marcus and Ryan K. Stumphauzer.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
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