Mistrial declared in Tenet kickback case

Prosecutors say a retrial is likely in a case involving a San Diego hospital accused of illegally paying physicians for referrals.

By Katherine Vogt, AMNews staff. March 7, 2005.

After nearly four months of testimony and presentations, a mistrial was declared in the federal kickback case against Tenet Healthcare Corp. and one its California hospitals.

U.S. District Judge M. James Lorenz declared the mistrial Feb. 17 after the jury was deadlocked following several days of deliberations.

Jurors had been weighing charges that Alvarado Hospital Medical Center in San Diego paid illegal kickbacks to physicians to boost referrals. Tenet and former Alvarado chief Barry Weinbaum were also defendants in the case.

The fate of the case was unclear immediately following the move. The judge had not yet ruled on the defendants' motion to dismiss the case, and prosecutors said they would not seek a retrial until the motion had been decided.

"The United States remains confident in its case but further comment is inappropriate in light of the motion still pending before the court and the likelihood of a retrial," said U.S. Attorney Carol C. Lam, in a prepared statement.

Tenet's general counsel, E. Peter Urbanowicz, said in written remarks that the for-profit hospital chain hoped prosecutors would decide there was no point in retrying the case, assuming that another jury would produce the same result.