News in brief - June 7, 2004

Oxford CEO could get big payment - HCA names insider to take over large division - Ardent to buy Tulsa health system - Thief does smash-and-grab for IDs - Doctor impersonator sent to prison - Symphony Healthcare hits a sour note

Oxford CEO could get big payment

The CEO of Oxford Health Plans stands to receive about $5.5 million in cash and stock as severance pay if his company is acquired by Minnesota-based UnitedHealth Group, even though Berg won't be out of a job if the deal is done.

The Hartford Courant reports that Charles G. Berg, who is slated to become the head of United's Northeast region once Trumbull, Conn.-based Oxford is acquired, will get nearly $3 million in cash plus 72,5000 shares of United restricted stock as part of the acquisition. His yearly base salary with United will be $825,000.

United announced plans to buy Oxford in April for about $5 billion in cash and stock. The deal must be approved by state and federal regulators.

HCA names insider to take over large division

HCA executive Charles R. Evans has been named the new president of the company's Eastern Group, which covers about 100 hospitals and generates nearly $11 billion in revenue annually.

Evans is replacing Jay Grinney, who left HCA in early May to become president and chief executive officer of HealthSouth Corp., the troubled outpatient services giant. His appointment was announced May 18 and was effective immediately.

Evans, 57, came to HCA in 1995 after working for a small hospital system in Indianapolis. He has served Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA in several positions, most recently as president of its Southeast Division.

Ardent to buy Tulsa health system

Ardent Health Services has agreed to pay $281.2 million to buy an Oklahoma-based health system that has dozens of health care facilities, including six hospitals in Tulsa and 10 others in the region.

The agreement to purchase Hillcrest HealthCare System, announced May 11, was subject to regulatory approval and closing conditions. It was expected to be completed this summer.

As part of the deal, Nashville, Tenn.-based Ardent agreed to invest roughly $100 million in the system over the next five years for new equipment, facilities improvements and more. It also agreed to hire Hillcrest's employees and maintain its medical staffs.

Ardent, which was established in 1993 with six behavioral health facilities, now owns 27 hospitals in 13 states. It had net revenue of $1.3 billion last year.

Thief does smash-and-grab for IDs

The Social Security numbers of about 95,000 insurance customers were obtained by a thief who smashed a car window and grabbed a computer hard drive that had been left unattended by the CEO of a technology company hired by a managed care network.

The Alameda Alliance for Health, a California nonprofit managed care plan serving about 100,000 members in the San Francisco area, has notified subscribers about the March 31 theft of their personal information.

Larry Saltzman, chief executive of Insurance Benefit Spot Check, was driving a backup hard drive containing insurance coverage data to a bank, and the hard drive was stolen en route while he was out of the car visiting his accountant's office, Saltzman told the San Francisco Chronicle.

Sacramento-based Spot Check acts as an intermediary between doctors' offices and insurers, allowing physicians to more easily check if patients have medical coverage.

Doctor impersonator sent to prison

A Los Angeles federal judge in May sentenced a 70-year-old man to 10 years in prison after he was convicted of impersonating a California physician a fifth time since the late 1970s.

Between the late 1970s and 2000, Gerald Barnes, born Jerald Barnbaum, stole the identity of Gerald C. Barnes, MD, an orthopedic surgeon, five times not only for personal financial gain but also to gain employment at several clinics in southern California.

In 1996, the phony physician, was sentenced to 12½ years in prison for posing as Dr. Barnes a fourth time. He escaped prison in 2000 and was arrested that same year working as "Dr. Barnes" in a Los Angeles clinic.

The 10-year sentence will run consecutive to the prior 12½- and 2½-year sentences Barnes/Barnbaum respectively received for his fourth conviction and escape. A story about the theft of Dr. Barnes' identity was previously published (AMNews, Oct. 13, 2003).

Symphony Healthcare hits a sour note

Symphony Healthcare has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection following legal action by former employees of its two shuttered acute care hospitals in Oregon.

The Nashville, Tenn.-based company announced the filing May 10, saying it would serve as part of an ongoing effort to liquidate its remaining hospital-related assets and pay creditors.

Symphony chair Ken Perry said in a written statement that the move had been prompted in part by the actions of former hospital employees. "We would have preferred to be able to resolve the financial issues of the company without this filing," he said.

Former employees sued Symphony in January when the company closed its two Portland-area hospitals -- the 209-bed Woodland Park Hospital and 100-bed Eastmoreland Hospital. Symphony said the hospitals had suffered from failing to obtain contracts with two managed care providers and having low patient volume.

Plaintiffs' attorney Giles Gibson said the lawsuits seek about $1.5 million in back wages and vacation pay for roughly 500 former employees. The lawsuits also seek damages under a federal statute that requires large employers to give advance notice when they are going to close.

Gibson said the former employees also filed legal petitions seeking to force Symphony into bankruptcy.

Symphony sold Eastmoreland Hospital to neighboring Reed College earlier this year and was seeking a buyer for Woodland Park.