On Monday, I gave some props to the Morning News for their Sunday piece on how Parkland has dealt with the way it overcharged the federal government for certain medical services it has provided. In so doing, I wrote: “For those who are wondering why construction hasn’t yet begun over there, look no further than this story. Until the hospital settles with the feds (and it will have to settle, perhaps on a figure approaching $20 million), it doesn’t know how much cash it has to build.” This last statement came from a conversation I had with a friend who once worked at Parkland and who still has friends there who expressed this sentiment to him. Shame on me for passing along that gossip on this blog.
Parkland will have an official groundbreaking on October 28 for its new facility. That date has never been pushed back. Construction has not been delayed because of any Department of Justice investigation into what the hospital owed the feds, according to the hospital’s PR man.