The man squirming in front of the 60 Minutes cameras on Sunday night was familiar to those who follow politics and health care in Broward County . <\/p>\n
Alan Levine, the former chief executive of the North Broward Hospital District the legal name for the entity that has since branded itself with the softer and more customer friendly Broward Health name was the executive sent to face the inquisitors by his employer, Health Management Associates Inc. <\/p>\n
The 60 Minutes report described what it said was the hospital chain pressuring doctors to meet quotas for admitting patients, all in the name of profit. <\/p>\n
Not so, Levine said. Here's the section of the transcript that starts with the back and forth between Levine and the TV show's Steve Kroft. <\/p>\n
As a memory refresher, heres what I wrote in the Jan. 9, 2008, newspaper about Levines departure: <\/p>\n
Alan Levine, the health care wunderkind brought in less than two years ago to reform the North Broward Hospital District, has resigned to take over the rebuilding of the fractured health care system in Louisiana. He'll be that state's secretary of health and hospitals, Gov.-elect Bobby Jindal announced Tuesday. Louisiana's health care system is still suffering two years after Hurricane Katrina. \"We're disappointed. But this is something that I think, if you know Alan, you would know this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,\" said Miguel \"Mike\" Fernandez, chairman of the hospital district board. \"For a high-profile individual like Alan, who loves challenges, this is right up his alley.\" Levine's new job involves overseeing public health, hospitals and all other health care facilities and providers, and emergency preparedness - the equivalent of three or four Florida state agencies under one roof. Levine said Jindal wants to transform the system. At a special board meeting, commissioners appointed Frank Nask, 60, as interim chief executive. He's a former hospital system executive and consultant Levine brought in as chief financial officer. Jindal will be sworn in Monday. Nask takes over immediately, but Levine's contract calls for 90 days of work and pay. Levine said he would stay as long as he would be useful to Nask. Levine's hospital district salary is $540,800 a year plus a $7,200 car allowance. His incentive compensation, or bonus, for meeting goals last year was $130,000. He said his Louisiana salary hasn't been finalized, but expects a 50 percent to 60 percent pay cut. The hospital district collects taxes and operates four public hospitals, including Broward General Medical Center, and dozens of other health facilities in the northern two-thirds of the county. Though its legal name is the North Broward Hospital District, the agency recently started using the brand name Broward Health. The district is governed by seven commissioners appointed by the governor. For years it has been a little-noticed, highly political agency. After a series of controversies, then-Gov. Jeb Bush swept out the commissioners and installed a new board. Commissioners hired Levine, 40, a former secretary of Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration, deputy chief of staff and health policy adviser to Bush as chief executive in 2006. He reshaped the hospital district as a leaner, cost-conscious, customer-oriented organization. Among his actions were renegotiating contracts with doctors to save the district money in a way that won plaudits from some, criticism from others. The hospital district's bond ratings also increased. Last year, Modern Healthcare magazine put Jindal, a former Louisiana health secretary before he was elected to the House of Representatives, and Levine on its list of the 30 people in America most likely to influence America's health care system in the next 30 years. Last fall, Commissioner Rebecca Stoll became dissatisfied with Levine. Her scrutiny ushered in a new round of infighting and accusations of wrongdoing. Stoll said Levine had \"misrepresented many facts to the board on critical votes. He also took several actions without board authority\" and concluded that \"everything in this place is upside down.\" Stoll's complaints prompted the board to authorize an outside investigation. The Miami law firm Rafferty, Stolzenberg, Gelles, Tenenholtz & Flynn concluded last month that \"a few of Commissioner Stoll's concerns had some merit\" but found no grounds for her most serious allegations. She could not be reached for comment Tuesday despite messages left on her cell phone and at her office. Commissioner Dan Gordon praised Levine. \"He had me and all the board members and all the staff think that we were on the verge of a world-class operation here. Two years ago we were running a county hospital,\" Gordon said. \"That was a whole mind-set that he fostered. He's a forward thinker.\" Both Levine and Fernandez, an appointee of Gov. Charlie Crist, said Levine wasn't pushed out of his job. \"I know that that's what it's going to appear to some. The reality is far from it,\" Fernandez said. \"Alan has done a very good job for us. We're very pleased with the results we were seeing.\" Levine said he was recruited by the Jindal transition team and met the governor-elect two weeks ago. \"I was very inspired,\" he said. \"He was amazing. He is a brilliant guy. He's going to be a great governor. Louisiana is a state that is going to be poised to see some transformation.\" <\/p>\n
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See original here:<\/p>\n
Ex- Broward hospital district chief squirms in '60 Minutes' hot seat<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The man squirming in front of the 60 Minutes cameras on Sunday night was familiar to those who follow politics and health care in Broward County . Alan Levine, the former chief executive of the North Broward Hospital District the legal name for the entity that has since branded itself with the softer and more customer friendly Broward Health name was the executive sent to face the inquisitors by his employer, Health Management Associates Inc Continue reading