A prominent cardiologist, who is one of the physicians at the center of a federal healthcare fraud investigation at Broward Health in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., has received a significant pay cut and is now required to provide care to poor patients under a new contract, according to a Miami Herald report.
Michael Chizner, MD, chief medical director of Broward Health's Heart Center for Excellence, was set to be dismissed Jan. 2 after "refusing to accept changes to his 10-year contract," according to the report. However, Dr. Chizner signed the new agreement with the system in December 2014.
The system paid Dr. Chizner $1.2 million last year, and under the new contract his maximum salary is capped at $867,200 for 2015, which will still make him one of the highest paid cardiologists in the U.S., according to the report.
Dr. Chizner's new contract also requires him to provide care to all patients "without regard to a patient's ability to pay for such services." That language is in stark contrast to a controversial provision of his prior contract which permitted him to only provide care to "existing, new and referred non-indigent patients."
The system sought to make changes to Dr. Chizner's contract in response to a federal investigation that dates back to 2011, which focuses on improper business relationships between Broward Health and its physicians, including Dr. Chizner.
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