PW Exclusives!

Unfair labor practice (ULP) charges and a refusal to clarify labor principles or allow pro-union workers access to meeting space has left many Providence Health & Services employees questioning the system’s claims to support workers’ right to form a union.

Providence employees have been organizing to form a union with SEIU Local 49 for approximately two years. Last summer, the Workers Rights Board Fair Election Oversight Commission, chaired by Oregon Secretary of State Bill Bradbury, determined that PH&S’s anti-union tactics made it impossible for hospital workers to hold a fair union election until Providence agreed to fair election ground rules.

» Read more.

Profile of Providence Health & Services in Alaska

This month ProvidenceWatch continues its series of profiles on each of the major markets in which Providence Health & Services operates. The goal is to help ProvidenceWatch readers better understand Providence’s place in the western U.S. hospital market.

With three times more operating revenue than its closest competitor, $321 million budgeted to build new facilities between 2005 and 2008, and the former Alaska Commissioner of Health and Social Services in charge of strategic development, Providence Health & Services is positioned to dominate the state’s health care market indefinitely.

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Providence Executives Implicated in "Anticompetitive Secret Society" Break-up

Three current and former Providence Health & Services executives were member-owners of the "anticompetitive secret society" dissolved under a January 25, 2007 settlement with the Connecticut and Florida Attorneys General. John Koster, Richard Umbdenstock, and Henry "Hank" Walker were all members of the Healthcare Research Development Institute (HRDI), the for-profit entity labeled a secret society by Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal.

According to the settlement titled an "Assurance of Voluntary Compliance," current Providence Health & Services CEO John Koster was on the HRDI board when Blumenthal began his investigation in 2005 . HRDI website records show that former Providence Health System CEO Henry "Hank" Walker became a member of the group in 2000 and then Providence Services CEO Richard Umbdenstock became a member of the group in 2002 .

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Profile of Providence Health & Services in Oregon

ProvidenceWatch continues with the second in a series of profiles on each of the states and major markets in which Providence Health & Services (PH&S) operates. The goal is to help ProvidenceWatch readers better understand PH&S’s place in the Western U.S. hospital market by taking a deeper look at their community operations.

PH&S is now the largest hospital system in Oregon. It has the greatest number of hospitals, the greatest number of inpatient discharges, and the highest operating and total profits. In 2005, PH&S produced 22% of all Oregon inpatient discharges.

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Previously unreported court documents reveal that former Providence Health System CEO Henry "Hank" Walker — who received a $5.6 million lump sum retirement payout when he left the company after a five-month leave in 2003 and 2004 — is now suing for up to $3 million in disability benefits.

In those same filings with U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, Walker’s attorneys say he was forced to leave Providence by fellow executives who believed him mentally unfit to run a multi-billion dollar company. Far from defending his mental competence, Walker’s complaint asserts that he was medically "unable to perform the important duties of his own occupation" at the time of his ouster and that he remains disabled.

» Read more.

Profile of Providence Health & Services in California

This week ProvidenceWatch launches the first in a series of profiles on each of the states and major markets in which Providence Health & Services operates. The goal is to help ProvidenceWatch readers better understand Providence’s place in the western U.S. hospital market.

While PH&S has a small presence in California’s large hospital market, compared to their market share in other states, they have an aggressive growth strategy. They are currently concentrated in Southern California, where they operate four acute care hospitals, four housing and assisted living businesses, four home health agencies, a primary care network, and a private high school.

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Providence settles lawsuit alleging overcharging the uninsured

Though filed separately, the legal complaints alleged the two systems billed uninsured patients higher "gross charges," or sticker prices, while they charged discounted rates to patients with insurance. According to the plaintiffs in the case, this practice effectively discriminates against the uninsured, while privileging insurance companies that negotiate lower rates for members.

» Read more.

• Comparison of Legacy and Providence Charity Care Settlements
• Comparison of Prices charged for most common services for uninsured patients, reflecting new uninsured discounts at Legacy and Providence in Oregon

In recent years, compensation for non-profit, tax-exempt health systems is under growing scrutiny. Alarmed at rising costs of health care and the lack of accountability in the tax exemption system, federal and state regulators — including Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the IRS, the Ohio Attorney General, and others — have initiated a recent flurry of investigations into the financial behavior of non-profit hospital systems, including how executives' salaries are determined. In a memorandum released by Sen. Grassley on September 12, the Senator vowed to pursue legislative reform to ensure that boards are "more focused on ensuring fair, just executive compensation at all non-profits, including hospitals."

» Read more.

• See the list of the top 20 highest paid executives at Providence
• Read Providence' explanation for Hank Walker and other executives' compensation
• See the list of the executive compensation at largest 25 U.S. health systems

Costly bandage

» Read more.

• View a fully footnoted version of this article
• View official contracts and modifications for two grants from the U.S. Dept. of Defense to Providence Health System, obtained by the Service Employees International Union under the Freedom of Information Act.

PH&S to spend $2 billion on massive investment program.
September 14, 2006
Providence Health & Services (PH&S) — the richest hospital system based on the west coast — has quietly launched a three year, $2 billion capital spending plan. Under this plan, Providence plans to invest in facilities and equipment at a rate 62% above the average for comparable companies. ProvidenceWatch obtained details on the plan from a previously undisclosed government filing. » Read more.

The PH&S capital budget is one of several dozen documents submitted to the Washington Health Care Facilities Authority (WHCFA) with its February 2006 application for a $414 million tax exempt bond to refinance past borrowing and for future projects. SEIU obtained the filings under the Washington State Public Records Act. Additional materials from this file are available from documents@providencewatch.org.