Fr. Corapi And Heart Surgery Fraud Cases

[Sarah147]

[quote]Last June, after Moon informed Corapi that he had a fatal heart condition and needed bypass surgery, he went to a lawyer to prepare a will. He went to confession and then he went to another hospital where he had close friends for the surgery.

"The cardiologist said, 'Excuse me, but what are we bypassing? You're bypassing something when you do a bypass surgery,'" recalls Corapi. "He said, 'I don't see anything.'"

After a series of tests showed that his heart was normal, Corapi called a meeting with Tenet's administrators at Redding Medical Center. He asked them to investigate the case and said "there is something that's not quite right." But the hospital refused. Instead, they told Corapi that he was in a life-threatening situation and that they concurred with Moon's recommendations.

Tenet's administrators also assured him that another anonymous cardiologist had also confirmed Moon's opinion. Meanwhile, Corapi consulted seven other cardiac specialists, who agreed his heart was healthy.

He then called the Redding Medical Center one last time. "It just sticks out in my memory," says Corapi. "Hal Chilton, the CEO, said over the phone, 'We like our position. Seek counsel if you like.'"

Father Corapi did more than seek counsel. He called the FBI, who eventually sent more than 40 agents to raid Redding Medical Center, Moon's office and the office of the hospital's director of cardiac surgery. They confiscated thousands of files, including those of at least 167 patients who died after surgery ordered by Moon.[/quote]
[url="http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/07/17/60minutes/main563755.shtml?tag=untagged"]http://www.cbsnews.c...ml?tag=untagged[/url]



[quote]The Rev. John Corapi, whose complaints to the F.B.I. appear to have set off the investigation, said he went to Dr. Moon for a checkup in May because his father had had heart problems. He did fine on a treadmill test, but Dr. Moon then recommended other tests including a catheterization.

''The doctor looked ominously over me when I'm still on the cath table and said: 'I'm sorry there's nothing I can do for you. You need immediate multiple-bypass surgery,' '' Father Corapi, 55, recalled in an interview. ''Then he left the room.''

The doctor tried to schedule the operation immediately but could not. So Father Corapi, a Catholic priest, decided to have the operation in Las Vegas, where he had a friend in medicine. But several cardiologists there, after looking at his test results, found little wrong with him. [/quote]
[url="http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/04/business/california-patients-talk-of-needless-heart-surgery.html?pagewanted=all"][url="http://www.nytimes.c...?pagewanted=all"]http://www.nytimes.c...?pagewanted=all[/url]
[/url]

It's great to see Fr. Corapi got the right diagnosis and stood up about this doctor! Fr. Corapi was said to receive $2.7 million in a law suit. I'm not sure if it went through, but if it did, boy would that have helped his order.

[CatherineM]

Any money given to him will be well used for his ministry. He is a serious Christian Soldier.

[cmaD2006]

FYI the 1st article dates back to 2003. The link to the 2nd article is bad.

[Sarah147]

I love Fr. Corapi! He's actually on EWTN right now.

I know the news is old, but it's still new to many people. And it's quite a story.

The correct link is: [url="http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/04/business/california-patients-talk-of-needless-heart-surgery.html?pagewanted=all"]http://www.nytimes.c...?pagewanted=all[/url]

Edited September 20, 2010 by JoyfulLife

[Cherie]

[quote name='JoyfulLife' timestamp='1284942472' post='2174746']
I love Fr. Corapi! He's actually on EWTN right now.

I know the news is old, but it's still new to many people. And it's quite a story.

The correct link is: [url="http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/04/business/california-patients-talk-of-needless-heart-surgery.html?pagewanted=all"]http://www.nytimes.c...?pagewanted=all[/url]
[/quote]

Glad that you posted this.

Unfortunately, the Hippocratic Oath is no longer required, and many doctors couldn't care less about their patients. Many times it's all about the money.

Most people trust their doctors' opinions more than they do their pastors'! But it's good for people to know that if something doesn't seem right, they should definitely seek out a second opinion!

[Lilllabettt]

This is why I like the way the Cleveland Clinic does it. All of the members of my medical team, nurses, physicians, surgeons etc. are "employees" of the hospital. They get a set salary every year, regardless of how many patients they see or how many procedures they do.

This means that my doctor's income is not dependent on them fighting an insurance company for reimbursement. It means they can spend as much time as they like taking care of me. And they are not tempted to view testing and procedures as cash cows. It keeps costs down and results in excellent patient care.

Mayo does it this way, too.

[Sarah147]

Lilla, that's awesome. I didn't know places do that. Who decides to do that? The state or town government, individual hospital, etc.?

[Lilllabettt]

[quote name='JoyfulLife' timestamp='1285278759' post='2175556']
Lilla, that's awesome. I didn't know places do that. Who decides to do that? The state or town government, individual hospital, etc.?
[/quote]

The hospital.

Usually these "clinics" are founded by doctors who get together as partners and do things "differently" ... either patient-centered or a new style of research or whatever ...

It works better when there is reputation involved. Some physicians are nervous about taking a salary, because it often involves some kind of pay cut to what they could get in a traditional setting. But when a hospital has an excellent research reputation, a lot of the best are willing to do it.

Another thing mayo, cleveland and others in this category do is the "team" approach ...

In a traditional setting, a sick patient has maybe 5 specialists looking after them, and each of these doctors has their own file on him ... As far as the specialists are concerned, they may as well have 5 different patients, since each one treats the sick person in isolation.

The team approach has all these specialists linked up to provide comprehensive care. They communicate with each other. They all have a copy of the same file and see whatever updates are made to it. Periodically they get together and talk about the patients they share. This helps them all decide together what the best course of action is. It stops one treatment from interfering with this medicine or that procedure or all the other things that can happen. it takes a lot of stress off the patient, in terms of "managing" health treatment. And of course, you don't need to go somewhere else to get a second opinion, because you have 5 experts who have come together to come up with this.

Edited September 23, 2010 by Lilllabettt

[Sternhauser]

[quote name='Lilllabettt' timestamp='1285279541' post='2175563']
The hospital.

Usually these "clinics" are founded by doctors who get together as partners and do things "differently" ... either patient-centered or a new style of research or whatever ...

It works better when there is reputation involved. Some physicians are nervous about taking a salary, because it often involves some kind of pay cut to what they could get in a traditional setting. But when a hospital has an excellent research reputation, a lot of the best are willing to do it.

Another thing mayo, cleveland and others in this category do is the "team" approach ...

In a traditional setting, a sick patient has maybe 5 specialists looking after them, and each of these doctors has their own file on him ... As far as the specialists are concerned, they may as well have 5 different patients, since each one treats the sick person in isolation.

The team approach has all these specialists linked up to provide comprehensive care. They communicate with each other. They all have a copy of the same file and see whatever updates are made to it. Periodically they get together and talk about the patients they share. This helps them all decide together what the best course of action is. It stops one treatment from interfering with this medicine or that procedure or all the other things that can happen. it takes a lot of stress off the patient, in terms of "managing" health treatment. And of course, you don't need to go somewhere else to get a second opinion, because you have 5 experts who have come together to come up with this.
[/quote]

Is your main drive that the doctors in certain hospitals, especially hospitals highly funded by Medicare patients, have an institutionalized incentive to perform unnecessary procedures?

~Sternhauser

Edited September 23, 2010 by Sternhauser

[Sarah147]

How does one go about finding places that operate that way? It sounds like a much better approach.

[Lilllabettt]

[quote name='Sternhauser' timestamp='1285279984' post='2175565']
Is your main drive that the doctors in certain hospitals, especially hospitals highly funded by Medicare patients, have an institutionalized incentive to perform unnecessary procedures?

~Sternhauser
[/quote]


I don't know anything about Medicare.

My main drive is that hospitals with physicians on salary deliver better patient care.

[Lilllabettt]

[quote name='JoyfulLife' timestamp='1285280324' post='2175567']
How does one go about finding places that operate that way? It sounds like a much better approach.
[/quote]


I'm not aware of any "list" out there.

If you're considering going somewhere for care, the thing to do is to ask if its a "group practice."
Doctors in "group practice" are on salary and collaborate.

[MissScripture]

[quote name='Lilllabettt' timestamp='1285279541' post='2175563']
The hospital.

Usually these "clinics" are founded by doctors who get together as partners and do things "differently" ... either patient-centered or a new style of research or whatever ...

It works better when there is reputation involved. Some physicians are nervous about taking a salary, because it often involves some kind of pay cut to what they could get in a traditional setting. But when a hospital has an excellent research reputation, a lot of the best are willing to do it.

Another thing mayo, cleveland and others in this category do is the "team" approach ...

In a traditional setting, a sick patient has maybe 5 specialists looking after them, and each of these doctors has their own file on him ... As far as the specialists are concerned, they may as well have 5 different patients, since each one treats the sick person in isolation.

The team approach has all these specialists linked up to provide comprehensive care. They communicate with each other. They all have a copy of the same file and see whatever updates are made to it. Periodically they get together and talk about the patients they share. This helps them all decide together what the best course of action is. It stops one treatment from interfering with this medicine or that procedure or all the other things that can happen. it takes a lot of stress off the patient, in terms of "managing" health treatment. And of course, you don't need to go somewhere else to get a second opinion, because you have 5 experts who have come together to come up with this.
[/quote]
I think in some places, now, with everything computerized, it's getting better as far as all the doctors knowing what has been done/is being done, provided it is in the same health system, which is wonderful. But it doesn't have QUITE the same collaboration as somewhere like that.

[quote name='Sternhauser' timestamp='1285279984' post='2175565']
Is your main drive that the doctors in certain hospitals, especially hospitals highly funded by Medicare patients, have an institutionalized incentive to perform unnecessary procedures?

~Sternhauser
[/quote]
With the rate at which Medicare reimburses, and the consequences if they're found to be doing something like that, doctors would be far more likely to do unnecessary tests on a patient who had some other insurance.

[Sternhauser]

[quote name='MissScripture' timestamp='1285282372' post='2175578']


With the rate at which Medicare reimburses, and the consequences if they're found to be doing something like that, doctors would be far more likely to do unnecessary tests on a patient who had some other insurance.
[/quote]

I wonder which party stands to lose more profit if he doesn't catch the fraud.

~Sternhauser

[Sarah147]

I'm actually pretty sure my doctor is with group practice, as they have referred me to specialists within the same practice name. So I guess so.