United Medical Center in Washington, D.C., lost its motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by its former chief medical officer Julian Craig, MD, according to Bloomberg Law.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia held Sept. 9 that Dr. Craig's lawsuit alleging retaliation, wrongful discharge and breach of contract could proceed. The court only dismissed one duplicate claim, according to the report.
Dr. Craig's contract with United Medical Center was not renewed at the end of 2017 after he criticized Veritas, the consulting firm running the hospital, during a hearing of the D.C. Council's health committee. He accused Veritas of encouraging physicians to admit patients who did not need medical treatment to boost revenue, improperly cutting his hours and ignoring programs focused on patient safety.
The physician filed the lawsuit against the hospital in early 2018, alleging he was fired for speaking out about the alleged problems at United Medical Center.