University of Virginia Health System CEO Pamela Sutton-Wallace announced she will leave her position for a COO slot with New York Presbyterian Hospital. UVA received intense scrutiny over its collection practices. WaPo reported:
Over six years ending in June 2018, the health system and its doctors sued former patients more than 36,000 times for over $106 million, seizing wages and bank accounts, putting liens on property and homes and forcing families into bankruptcy.It's called aggressive revenue cycle management. The University Medical Center has to justify its nonprofit status and a challenge would seem in order.
Unpaid medical bills are a leading cause of personal debt and bankruptcy, with hospitals from Memphis to Baltimore criticized for their role in pushing families over the financial edge. But UVA Health System stands out for the scope of its collection efforts and how persistently it goes after payment, pursuing poor as well as middle-class patients for almost all they’re worth, according to court records, hospital documents and interviews with hospital officials and dozens of patients.Early in her career at Duke University Sutton-Wallace said:
"I am creating systems where I am having an impact on the communities that I serve."For some served by UVA Health System the impact has been traumatic and horrific. It's not clear if collections were included in the measures determining her bonus, but extrinsic motivators could have contributed to the last four years of the study period under CEO Sutton-Wallace. The CEO has a $750,000 annual salary with bonus potential to reach $1 million.
Greed has infected our healthcare system and it is causing real harm to individuals and families.
