Say you’re one of the country’s biggest hospital chains and you were recently fined hundreds of millions of dollars by the Securities and Exchange Commission for bilking Medicare. What do you do to turn your image around?
How about appointing Jeb Bush to your board of directors? After all, Jeb spent considerable time while governor of Florida attempting to privatize Medicare, cut elderly people out of reimbursement, and generally destroy the program. It’s a slam dunk!
In his first publicized business activity since leaving office in January, former Gov. Jeb Bush is joining the board of Tenet Healthcare, the national hospital chain that’s working to clean up its image and performance since dealing with widespread allegations of fraud.
…The money-losing chain, which owns and operates 62 hospitals in 12 states, has been struggling to emerge from a series of legal and financial problems. Earlier this month, it paid $10 million to settle a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation into Medicare fraud allegations. Last year, it reached an agreement with the federal government to pay $900 million to settle allegations of Medicare fraud.
Jeb, whose previous health care experience consists of camping on the deathbed of Terri Schiavo and second-guessing her medical team, thinks it’s a great idea.
”It’s in the healthcare industry, which is something I know something about,” Bush said…”And it’s a place that over the next few years there’ll be some unsettled water. I prefer to go to some place where I can add value, rather than go to a place where things are going really well.”
You picked a winner there, buddy. And in a move he will one day explain to his maker, Bob Kerrey backs the appointment.
Former Sen. J. Robert Kerrey, a Democrat from Nebraska and chairman of the Tenet board’s nominating committee, said in a prepared statement: “I believe [Bush's] decision to join us reflects the real strides the company has made in recent years to build a solid foundation for future growth based on integrity and quality.”
Not to mention big bucks.
