Texas lawmaker files bill to crack down on corrupt hospital operators
A leading Texas lawmaker filed legislation Monday to crack down on unscrupulous hospital operators by requiring greater disclosure of ownership interests and more frequent state safety inspections.
Sen. Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown, introduced the bill after a Dallas Morning News investigation that exposed gaps in regulations that make it easy for felons and fraudsters to take over hospitals, drain them of money and neglect patient care.
"This article brought to light the issue of bad owners,'' said Schwertner, an orthopedic surgeon and chairman of the Senate health and human services committee. "Texas can't tolerate poor quality care, poor leadership, and individuals who defraud people who are vulnerable and sick.''
Schwertner's legislation revives an effort by Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Lewisville, to improve oversight of hospitals. Her bill was inspired by a 2013 News series that detailed fraud and slumlike conditions in a rural hospital chain owned by Dallas businessman Dr. Tariq Mahmood. The Senate approved her bill, but it didn't pass the House.
Read more: http://www.dallasnews.com/news/investigations/2016/12/05/texas-lawmaker-files-bill-crack-corrupt-hospital-operators
[font color=330099]Too late for the Gulf Coast Medical Center in Wharton, where I live. They filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy last month. The owner, Paul R. Tuft of Scottsdale, Arizona, has run several hospitals across the country into bankruptcy.[/font]
