Business
Tenet sells troubled Calif. hospital
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Aug. 2, 2004
Tenet Healthcare Corp. has completed its sale of the embattled Redding Medical Center, a California hospital where two physicians were accused of performing hundreds of unnecessary cardiac procedures to boost profits.
The hospital was purchased by an affiliate of Hospital Partners of America Inc., Tenet announced July 16. Tenet said one of its own subsidiaries would retain liabilities associated with the hospital that stemmed from before the sale, which was expected to generate net proceeds of about $57 million.
In August 2003, Tenet agreed to pay the federal government $54 million to settle claims that unnecessary procedures were performed at the hospital and billed to government programs. Tenet did not admit any wrongdoing. As part of the settlement, the government reserved the right to pursue administrative action against the Santa Barbara, Calif.-based hospital chain.
Ultimately, Tenet agreed to sell the Redding Medical Center so the hospital wouldn't be excluded from participating in Medicare and other federal health programs.
The company still faces civil lawsuits filed on behalf of patients and their families.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2004/08/02/bibf0802.htm.
