A former California hospital CEO has pleaded no contest to charges related to his time at Healthcare Conglomerate Associates, a hospital management firm based in Tulare, Calif.
Yorai "Benny" Benzeevi, MD, pleaded no contest to six felony counts of conflict of interest and two misdemeanor counts of failure to timely disclose campaign expenditures and using an official position for personal gain, according to the Tulare County district attorney's office.
Dr. Benzeevi is required to pay $2.4 million in restitution to the Tulare Local Healthcare District, District Attorney Tim Ward said in a news release posted online. Dr. Benzeevi's plea agreement also includes 120 days of house detention as well as community service and probation, according to the Visalia Times-Delta.
"Healthcare is truly a basic quality-of-life issue, and the rural healthcare system in California is fragile," Mr. Ward said. "I view the Tulare Regional Medical Center as a vulnerable victim, and I am pleased the hospital and the citizens of Tulare have persevered to arrive at this significant day."
The plea agreement follows charges filed in 2020 against Dr. Benzeevi, who, through Healthcare Conglomerate Associates, or HCCA, took over operation of Tulare Regional a decade ago. Charges were also filed at the time against Alan Germany, who was acting CFO of Tulare Regional and Inyo Hospital in Lone Pine, Calif., and Bruce Greene, who served as HCCA's attorney.
In 2017, Dr. Benzeevi and HCCA were ousted, and the hospital filed for bankruptcy and closed that year. After HCCA's ouster, the Tulare Local Healthcare District entered a management agreement with Roseville, Calif.-based Adventist Health.
Mr. Germany has also agreed to a plea deal related to charges that included embezzlement, conflict of interest and using his official position for personal gain. In December 2023, he was ordered to write an apology letter to the residents of the hospital district and to pay $150,000 in restitution.
Mr. Greene's firm and the hospital district reached a $3 million civil settlement last year, and Mr. Greene is expected back in court in May, according to the Visalia Times-Delta.
Mr. Ward said Dr. Benzeevi's sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 19.