Good Samaritan: "Additional Arrests Are Possible"

Buried in the "B" section of the TimesDaily on September 8th was a short article on the scheduled December sentencing of Randy Gist, former owner of Good Samaritan Hospice in Florence. At the bottom of the story lay a bombshell: (Tim) Case said additional arrests are possible.

Certainly anything is possible, but why mention this tidbit to the press if Case wasn't sure it was a major possibility? Was he referring to the physician who owned half the defunct hospice? Or was he referring to the business manager, a nurse who was stripped of the "Registered" credential long ago?

Rumors abound that the FBI is hot on the case of another local physician who is said to have committed major Medicare fraud. Perhaps our Federal investigative arm needs to set up a special Shoals office for those who see Medicare as their personal gravy train.

*****

The call came to ECM late on the morning of September 11, 2001. Authorities instructed the hospital to prepare every available room; the Florence hospital would soon be receiving stable patients from the UAB burn unit.

None came. None came because UAB received no critically injured and burned patients who needed the beds more. They were all dead.

As personnel at ECM stood and waited for the influx, so did their counterparts in Birmingham. How long before they realized the futility of their preparation? How long before our country realized the magnitude of what occurred early on that Tuesday morning?

Each of us reacted in different ways. Many joined the military. Others resolved to change what could be changed. We fall into the latter category. We can't go to Washington and tell them how to do things. We can work to make the Shoals a safer and more productive area in which to live. Let's recommit to that today.



Shoalanda
Holding the Block since 2008

Randy Gist Guilty/Drowning Machine Claims Another Life?

Former Good Samaritan Hospice co-owner Randy Gist has pleaded guilty to fraud in Federal Court. According to sources there my be at least one sexual harassment civil suit still outstanding against Gist.

Along with Good Samaritan, A & E Hospice and Blue Water Hospice have also closed their doors. Florence's Hospice Complete has a new owner, and reportedly a new name will be forthcoming. Keller recently formed a holding company for its affiliated hospice. Most hospices in this area are honestly managed, but with the abundance of competition and tighter government controls, we expect to see at least one other such enterprise go under within the next year.

Related posts:

Hospice Wars: Good Samaritan

Hospice Wars III: Another One Bites the Dust

Hospice Hijinks

*****

Apparently signs aren't enough, but who is responsible for the five lives lost since the Cypress Creek weir was built in 1980? An article in today's TimesDaily states that boaters actually seek out such environs when they are at their most dangerous. There's little chance the missing kayaker will be found alive, but we can still hope.

It was only three week ago that we commented on the dangers:

The Drowning Machine

*****

It was good to see the TD's Trevor Stokes off the Russellville beat in today's edition. Is he no longer in exile?



Shoalanda

You Can Tell It's Handy Week...

...and if you can't, you didn't accidentally wander into the throngs flocking to Sax in the City or the car load of Kudzu Queens. The temperature is actually bearable, so there's no excuse not to make as many events as possible.

Here's the schedule for this year: W. C. Handy Festival 2009

*****

Since our column yesterday on Good Samaritan Hospice, we've been inundated with e-mails from former employees. According to most, yes, their last pay check did indeed bounce, and this was hardly the least flattering comment most had to make concerning their former employer. Obviously, accusations are just that until they've been documented, but we hope to bring you an update on the Good Samaritan bankruptcy in the future.

*****

Shoalanda Speaks in now on Facebook. If you haven't joined that social networking sight, we think you'll like it. We've discovered one advantage already--we get to read Jim Fisher's computer column a day early. See you there.

Hospice Wars III - Good Samaritan Bites the Dust

In a totally anticlimatic event, Good Samaritan Hospice closed its doors for the last time Tuesday. The empire that Randy Gist and Ragesh Boorgu founded in October 2003 has joined A & E Hospice on the casualty list of enterprises that ran afoul of Medicare regulations, dripping of red ink at the end. According to court documents, Good Samaritan has outstanding debts of five million dollars.

Gist, CEO of Good Samaritan, initially filed for bankruptcy earlier this year at which time the company claimed 100 patients. The hospice listed only 40 patients in its care when it closed this week. From our February 18th blog:

Gist filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in a Decatur Federal Court. His attorney, Stuart M. Maples of Maples & Ray PC, is asking that Good Samaritan's payments to Medicare be reduced from $84,000.00 to $25,000.00 per month. Gist claims an average monthly income of $212,000.00, making the currently scheduled payment almost 40% of the agency's gross receipts.

Stuart Maples stated this week that it was Randy Gist's decision to close the hospice doors at this time. One may infer that with a shrinking number of patients and rising debts, Good Samaritan no longer had the financial means to make payroll.

According to Maples, the company's assets will be sold to repay its debts. The salient question now has to be just what are the company's assets? The Haleyville and Madison offices were closed months ago and their assets presumably liquidated at that time. Those who have visited the company's offices on Dr. Hicks Boulevard in Florence usually came away remarking on the sparseness of furnishings, if not the outright shabbiness. How did the company accumulate five million dollars of debt in less than six years, and where did the money go?

We're sure quite a few creditors will be asking that last question at the July 28th hearing in Decatur. We're also sure there will be some surprising answers.


Reminder: Be sure to catch Sheffield native Will Stutts in the UNA Summer Theatre production of Amadeus, running today through Sunday.

Hospice Wars: Good Samaritan

Randy Gist opened Good Samaritan Hospice USA, Inc., in October 2003. Since that time the home health agency, for which Gist serves as President and Chief Executive Officer, has grown to be one of the largest hospice endeavors in the Tennessee Valley, opening satellite offices in Russellville, Haleyville, and Madison. It is also the agency with the highest reported employee turnover.

On Monday, Gist filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in a Decatur Federal Court. His attorney, Stuart M. Maples of Maples & Ray PC, is asking that Good Samaritan's payments to Medicare be reduced from $84,000.00 to $25,000.00 per month. Gist claims an average monthly income of $212,000.00, making the currently scheduled payment almost 40% of the agency's gross receipts. If Gist is allowed to restructure his business, will it be able to survive in today's economic climate? Perhaps more importantly, how did Good Samaritan come to find itself owing Medicare such a massive debt totalling over five million dollars?

While the average Shoals citizen may look askance at the ubiquitous check cashing businesses dotting every major thoroughfare in the Valley, those involved in the medical/health care professions look at hospices with the same bemusement. Even with the demise of A&E Hospice last fall, the Shoals area has more hospices per capita than are found in most metropolitan areas; in other words, it is a war and the losers have more to lose than just their shirts. Those who are unable to repay Medicare and Medicaid over payments may be subject to criminal charges.

Certainly Good Samaritan has attempted to live up to its name. In the past, the hospice has hosted blood drives, collected blankets for the indigent, and sponsored concerts to benefit AIDS research. Randy Gist even met his wife Katina at the 2007 "Cupid for a Cure" his company sponsored. Such good corporate citizens are not usually portrayed in a negative light, but apparently bookkeeping skills have been lacking at Good Samaritan, something Gist blames on the Federal Government.

No one knows how long a hospice patient may live, yet other companies have managed to balance their patient load, ensuring compliance with Federal regulations. Interestingly, Good Samaritan's website requests donations for patient care. If Good Samaritan and Randy Gist plan to stay afloat, it will take a better game plan than that.


What's up with this: Those opposed to the sale of ECM Hospital to a private Texas company should immediately contact Mayor Bobby Irons and their local city and county representatives. Surely this hospital can be saved without such a drastic measure.