Karl A. Racine, the attorney general of Washington, D.C., is looking into the fundraising efforts of soon-to-be-closed Providence Hospital and management fees the hospital paid to St. Louis-based Ascension Health, according to the National Catholic Reporter.
A former hospital board member reported what were believed to be Ascension's financial improprieties to Mr. Racine's office. The former board member alleges that when the Providence Hospital Foundation hosted its annual black-tie fundraising gala in April 2018, with sponsorship of tables starting at $10,000, Ascension already had planned to shut down the hospital. All funds raised from the gala will now go to Ascension once Providence closes its emergency room at the end of April. The board member expressed concern that donors thought they were giving gifts to a local charity, not a national healthcare network.
The former board member also expressed concern about the $20 million annual management fee Providence paid to Ascension. In addition to believing the fee was excessive, the board member expressed concern that on Ascension's 2017 taxes, the system claimed Providence did not pay any management fees when it actually had.