Five years ago Hurricane Katrina sideswiped New Orleans, filling it with toxic gumbo. Flood waters inundated area hospitals. Memorial Medical Center lost 35 patients in the storm's hellish aftermath. Memorial's LifeCare unit, lost 25 of the 35 patients.
Memorial Medical Center has not been rebuilt. Tenet Healthcare owned Memorial, while LifeCare, an affiliate of The Carlyle Group, rented a floor in the facility.
What has been rebuilt is LifeCare's balance sheet. However, LifeCare continues to aggressively fight Katrina lawsuits. The company has no facilities in New Orleans.
Tenet Healthcare recently tried to buy Healthscope, an Australian hospital company. They lost to The Carlyle Group. Did either reveal their Katrina nightmares to Healthscope's board? Doubtful.
For two firms involved in Katrina, rebuilding is elsewhere.
