Blogger: Broward Health Legal Czar Lynn Barrett Misuses Rules To Purge Enemies
BY BUDDY NEVINS
More trouble at Broward Health.
The sprawling public health care system’s General Counsel is using the compliance provisions of a multi-million dollar federal settlement to purge her enemies, alleges blogger and activist Dan Lewis.
Dan Lewis
Lewis’ accusation is just the latest charter in General Counsel Lynn Barrett’s rocky career at Broward Health.
Along with the allegations of shady political dealing, Barrett is facing one criminal charge. She awaits trial, along with four other Broward Health officials, for conspiracy to violate Florida’s Sunshine Law.
The Sunshine Law requires most public business to be done in public. Broward Health has a decades-long history of allegations that officials make multi-million dollar decisions in backrooms in violation of the law.
Broward Health is a tax-assisted public heath care system, which operates four hospitals and numerous clinics. Owners of property located north of Griffin Road pay taxes to Broward Health.
Along with many others including the Sun-Sentinel, Lewis has alleged for years that Broward Health is mismanaged. In addition to his advocacy on public health issues, Lewis is one of Broward’s most successful political strategists and a former Miramar city commissioner. He now lives in Fort Lauderdale.
In his most recent blog post, Lewis alleges that the system’s Independent Review Organization has been “weaponized” by Barrett to get even with her critics.
The Independent Review Organization was created as part of a federal agreement to settle charges of illegally overpaying physicians and thus committing Medicare and Medicaid fraud. A law firm was hired as the review organization to make sure that staff was complying with federal law. Allegations are that the law firm is close to Barrett.
“The employee targets of the IRO happened to have had the audacity of questioning Lynn Barrett and objecting to some of Barrett’s actions (and I’m being kind by using the word “objecting…The Broward Health Board needs to start doing its oversight job and establish clear policies that heal, grow and protect the entire Broward Health organization and that includes addressing this IRO runaway train that Counsel Barrett appears to have weaponized,” Lewis wrote.
Lynn Barrett
Fascinating allegations of Broward Health’s mismanagement!
Lewis’ blog is chock-full of documents and includes videos of meetings. The videos are a public service since Broward Health is one of the few governments that deliberately keeps its business opaque by its lack of Internet videos.
Google for videos of a Broward Health meeting and Lewis’ work pops up. Videos posted by Broward Health itself? Nada.
Wanna read and see more?
Here is the link to Lewis’ latest. Here is the link to his entire blog.
August 6th, 2018 at 1:41 pm
I stated before the governor should let go every single one of them and start over.
August 6th, 2018 at 4:18 pm
I agree with Walsh
August 7th, 2018 at 12:12 pm
BH is administratively a mess. For healthcare, it is still the best in the county.
August 8th, 2018 at 5:51 am
The taxpayers of Broward County should be outraged that The Board of Commissioners does not provide proper oversight of legal costs and strategy. The hospital have become Lynn Barrett’s personal checking account to fight anyone who opposes her competency. Barrett framed Pauline Grant and has funneled MILLIONS to Gov. Scott connected law firms.
August 10th, 2018 at 4:09 pm
Someone needs to look at the millions that will be doled out in severance packages when these folks are let go.
Directors were promoted to VPs and AVPs assuring them they will get a years severance with benefits. We will be paying for their incompetence for years to come. It is a travesty.
August 13th, 2018 at 12:04 pm
Yes, I agree with Walsh.
August 14th, 2018 at 6:27 am
It’s time that nurses are represented: Contact-
Martha Baker, RN
President/Executive Director
marthabakerrn@seiu1991.org
305-620-6555
August 17th, 2018 at 2:28 pm
Walsh.
letting them all go means severances paid out. The 2 VPs in HR that were let go were given 3 years combined in severance. The VP was with the organization for less than 6 months. The SVP was here barely a year.
The board needs to change this greedy policy. The regular employees are suffering because of this kind of stuff. Yes, get a union