Here is the complete text of their letter:
Dear Colleague,
Critics of physician-owned medical facilities have claimed that their intention in seeking to force the closure of these facilities is “to ensure that physician investments are bona fide and not simply a means to buy physician referrals—a practice prohibited by several federal laws.”[1] Illegal kickback and physician self-referral schemes have become endemic to American health care and the bad actors involved in these arrangements must be stopped. The Justice Department’s Civil Division has responded by vigorously pursuing charges against many of the most egregious offenders.
Since the enactment of the Stark Law, the provisions which outlaw arrangements in which doctors receive financial incentives to refer patients to health care facilities, the Justice Department has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars in penalties for violations. What the critics of physician ownership won’t tell you, however, is that the largest settlements for Stark Law violations haven’t come from physician-owned facilities. I encourage you to browse the Department of Justice’s website (www.usdoj.gov) for details on some of the largest settlements involving physician referrals and kickback schemes—here’s a sampling of what you’ll find:
Date Amount Entity Ownership Structure
6/29/2006 $47 million Tenet Healthcare Corporation For-Profit Corporation
3/24/2004 $22.5 million Tenet Healthcare Corporation For-Profit Corporation
11/1/2002 $15.1 million McLeod Regional Med Ctr (SC) Non-Profit Hospital
12/14/2007 $14.9 million HealthSouth Corporation For-Profit Corporation
12/10/2007 $7.5 million Warren Hospital (NJ) Non-Profit Hospital
1/5/2007 $7.5 million SCCI Health Services Corp. For-Profit Corporation
10/20/2006 $5.7 million Northside Hospital (GA) Non-Profit Hospital
4/24/2008 $5.1 million Mem Health Univ Med Ctr (GA) Non-Profit Hospital
7/18/2006 $3.8 million Marion County (SC) Med Ctr Non-Profit Hospital
12/19/2007 $1.5 million Community Mem Health Sys (CA) Non-Profit Hospital
Source: United States Department of Justice
Ironically, the groups advocating to end the physician ownership of medical facilities, for-profit hospital conglomerates and non-profit hospital associations, are the same groups that are sanctioned with enormous fines for violating the Stark Law on physician referrals. Don’t believe the critics of physician-owned health care when they tell you they are concerned about self-referrals—this is about shuttering hospitals, limiting patient choice, and removing healthy competition from our local medical networks.
Please join our efforts to protect the local ownership of medical facilities and hospitals by physicians. This highly successful ownership model has allowed local doctors to provide vital health services for our constituents and should not be ended through legislation.
Sincerely,
________/s/____________________ _________/s/_____________________
Rep. Rubén Hinojosa Rep. Sam Johnson
