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The top leader of a national health care management company testified he plans to provide clinical services in PeaceHealth emergency departments in Lane County, as a legal challenge over the system’s staffing transition plays out in federal court.
ApolloMD CEO Dr. Yogin Patel plans to provide clinical services at PeaceHealth hospitals in Lane County, according to testimony Tuesday, April 28, in U.S. District Court.
Patel was among the witnesses taking the stand Tuesday, the second day of a hearing in a lawsuit between plaintiffs Eugene Emergency Physicians and defendants PeaceHealth and ApolloMD.
At the center of the hearings is Senate Bill 951, which aims to close a loophole in Oregon’s corporate practice of medicine doctrine that allowed corporations to appear compliant by naming physicians as practice owners while maintaining control behind the scenes.
Plaintiffs believe ApolloMD has created a new group, Lane Emergency Physicians, as a falsified practice to disguise ApolloMD’s “de facto control” in clinical decision-making. They seek a judge’s order blocking the transition to Lane Emergency Physicians. Attorneys for PeaceHealth and ApolloMD want the suit dismissed, arguing the plaintiffs lack standing and the suit fails to state a claim.
Dr. Johne Chapman, who practices in Illinois, is set to own Lane Emergency Physicians, which Patel said is “supported” by ApolloMD.
The term “supported” was not clearly defined during Patel’s nearly two hours of testimony. But Patel told U.S. District Judge Mustafa Kasubhai that ApolloMD operates as a management services organization, likening its role to an independent project manager for private medical entities such as Lane Emergency Physicians.
Patel also said that he can, and plans to, provide clinical services, because he is employed by Independent Physician Resources, an affiliate of ApolloMD. The scope of those services was not discussed Tuesday in court, though clinical services typically include making decisions about patient care and discharge.
The question of conflict of interest between Patel’s roles as a CEO and a medical provider was not raised or argued during Tuesday’s proceedings, which was reserved for testimony.
Lookout Eugene-Springfield attempted to speak with Patel during a break, but he declined to comment while proceedings were ongoing, he said. In an email, PeaceHealth spokesperson Joe Waltasti said, “Dr. Patel still works ED (emergency department) shifts at various Apollo supported EDs and will be an option here in Lane County.”
Waltasti then differed Lookout to ApolloMD’s communication team, who did not immediately respond to requests to comment.
Lookout Eugene-Springfield planned to ask Patel about the scope of his clinical services and how they may be viewed by the community in light of allegations that Jim McGovern, a PeaceHealth executive without an active medical license, overstepped his administrative role.
The Oregon Medical Board issued Patel an active license March 19. Several new physicians have also been licensed by the state, but hospital credentialing — a separate process — remains incomplete. No new doctors have been credentialed at Sacred Heart Medical Center RiverBend or Cottage Grove, while Florence has added five newly credentialed physicians alongside five already in place.
The credentialing committee at RiverBend meets the first week of each month to review applications, according to a doctor’s testimony Monday.
Ben Botkin contributed to this report.
