Former U.S. Representative and mayor of Cleveland Dennis Kucinich upped the ante Thursday in the battle to keep Lakewood (Ohio) Hospital open by filing a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission. However, some officials are saying the development is political theater.
Here are five things to know about the complaint and the ongoing conflict between Lakewood Hospital and Cleveland Clinic.
1. Mr. Kucinich filed the 21-page complaint with the Federal Trade Commission Thursday. It contains more than 80 declarations that in sum ask the FTC to stop the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, the nonprofit corporation that operates Cleveland Clinic, from "further misusing its contractual and fiduciary relationship as the operator of
Lakewood Hospital" and protect Lakewood Hospital from closing and merging its assets with Cleveland Clinic.
2. Kevin Butler, the city's director of law, called Mr. Kucinich's attempts to delay the process a "political stunt." In a letter to a Cleveland.com reporter regarding Mr. Kucinich's actions, Mr. Butler wrote, "Every thinly veiled attempt to create a circus atmosphere in an election season further jeopardizes the future of healthcare in Lakewood. It would be comical if it weren't so dangerous." He wrote that it would be dangerous to take no measures to rethink healthcare in the face of a declining hospital and to not upgrade the facility would reverse the progress the city has made.
3. A Cleveland Clinic statement issued Thursday denies the claims made in Mr. Kucinich's filing. "The allegations in Mr. Kucinich's letter are no different than the allegations that have been made in the pending lawsuit about Lakewood Hospital," the statement says, according to Cleveland.com. "None of the Cleveland Clinic's actions or its proposals to transform healthcare delivery in Lakewood has violated any law. The Cleveland Clinic looks forward to continuing discussions with the City and Lakewood Hospital Association to address the specific healthcare needs of the Lakewood community."
4. In January, Cleveland Clinic announced plans to close the 108-year-old Lakewood Hospital.At this time, the Lakewood Hospital Association, Lakewood Hospital Foundation and the Cleveland Clinic signed a letter of intent to replace the city-owned hospital with a $34 million family health center and emergency department, which would be owned and operated by Cleveland Clinic. The Clinic and LHA said declining patient volume and slipping revenues motivated the closure. A lawsuit was filed in May in an attempt to get the system to continue leasing the hospital through 2026, rather than close and replace it.
5. Mr. Kucinich's filing with the FTC alleges Cleveland Clinic had a secret plan to merge Lakewood Hospital with the clinic through a "decanting" process. The filing details plans to move Lakewood programs to other Cleveland Clinic facilities to undermine the hospital's finances. It also alleges the letter of intent filed in January would essentially terminate the hospital's lease with Cleveland Clinic, and in doing so, deprive the citizens of Lakewood of a full-service, inpatient hospital; destroy the city's ability to attract potential competitors and cost taxpayers $26 million to wind down hospital operations, among other claims.
Correction: This article was updated at 2:05 pm CST on Oct. 16, 2015. It incorrectly stated the May lawsuit was an attempt to extend the lease of the hospital through 2026. Cleveland Clinic does have a contract to operate Lakewood Hospital until 2026. The lawsuit was an attempt to hold it to the lease. We regret this error.
More articles on legal and regulatory issues:
Former CEO of Chicago hospital gets 21 months for perjury
2 Humana shareholders sue to prevent Aetna deal
The 'halo over nonprofits' is gone and 3 other takeaways from recent Stark Law settlements