We understand that many of those who received Federal Grand Jury subpoenas then received letters that they did not have to appear. However, the FBI has followed up with “intensive” interrogation of witnesses. The emphasis seems to be on free medical care and conflict of interest.
We will keep you posted.
For anyone who has utilized the services of San Bernardino County’s hospital and is not an Arrowhead Regional Medical Center (ARMC) VIP, it comes as no surprise that ARMC’s billing system is a mess. Those who handle the billing are spread throughout the medical center and no one talks to one another. As a matter of fact, turf wars exist that sometimes result in billing being months, and yes, even years behind. It is yet one more area of ARMC that its medical director, Dr. Dev Gnanadev, has micromanaged into disarray.
ARMC has traditionally served the indigent and low-income members of our county. As such, many receive Medi-Cal, SSI and other government entitlement programs. Such programs are strict about billing, but if done correctly and timely, result in millions of dollars being returned to San Bernardino County. “Correctly” and “timely” are the key words here. Continue reading
Investigators Looking Into Arrowhead Regional’s Operations
Allegations of malpractice, licensing shortcomings, operational and managerial miscues and substandard accounting practices at the county hospital are the focus of separate inquiries by federal and state agencies, the Sentinel has learned.
The Sentinel was unable to ascertain whether a rumored survey of the hospital’s operations by auditors working at the behest of the board of supervisors is actually underway.
The issues being looked into include current practices as well as those extending back nearly a decade at the Colton-based facility, which is known as the Arrowhead Regional Medical Center.
The sharpest focus is that on the administrative action of Dev GnanaDev, who is both the current medical director of Arrowhead Regional as well as its head of surgery. GnanaDev also happens to be the president of the California Medical Association.
Some of the suspected problems at the hospital originated at a level well below that of GnanaDev and involved several instances of medical malpractice and faulty diagnoses. Others have been attributed to GnanaDev directly.
One known case, the Sentinel is informed, elicited the interest of federal investigators and involved a thirteen year old girl who had suffered a dislocated neck. Physicians and staff failed to adequately recognize or diagnose the condition, resulting in the child becoming permanently paralyzed. The medical staff further stands accused of having lied to the parents about the situation.