Judge Drops Two Charges Against Tenet
A judge has dropped two charges in an anti-kickback case against Tenet Healthcare Corp. but kept in place 18 other counts, including conspiracy, related to an alleged scheme by its Alvarado hospital in San Diego to bribe doctors to refer patients, the company said.
Prosecutors brought the case to trial last fall. After four months of testimony and deliberation, jurors could not agree on a verdict, and the judge declared a mistrial in February. A second trial is expected to begin in early May.
Dallas-based Tenet, the nation’s second-largest hospital company, faces fines if convicted, and Alvarado could be expelled from Medicare and Medicaid programs.
-- Lisa Girion
