Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar » Documents directly contradict statements made by Obama pal Whitaker about 2019 hospital closure
SUBSCRIBE to Capitol Fax      Advertise Here      About     Exclusive Subscriber Content     Updated Posts    Contact Rich Miller
CapitolFax.com
To subscribe to Capitol Fax, click here.
Documents directly contradict statements made by Obama pal Whitaker about 2019 hospital closure

Monday, Jun 28, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller

* Crain’s Chicago Business on February 15, 2019

Just two weeks after acquiring three former Tenet Healthcare hospitals, Pipeline Health has plans to shutter one of them.

The impending closure of Westlake Hospital was announced late Feb. 15 by the village of Melrose Park. Dr. Eric Whitaker, vice chair and principal of Los Angeles-based Pipeline, called Democratic state Rep. Emanuel Chris Welch of Westchester, a member of the hospital’s board of trustees, late in the day to share the news.

Whitaker is best known as the founder of Chicago-based health care investment firm TWG Partners, which was previously involved in the purchase with Pipeline, and as a friend of former President Barack Obama. He confirmed in a Feb. 16 interview that Pipeline intends to file an application with the state to discontinue service at the 230-bed community hospital.

[Whitaker] added: “We didn’t come into the purchase with the idea of, ‘Let’s buy two hospitals and let’s close one.’ We wanted to build a community hospital system in the Chicagoland area to make these one-off hospitals, that are highly vulnerable, viable again.”

* Crain’s last week

Westlake closed nearly seven months after Pipeline Health acquired the 230-bed hospital in 2019. Despite public statements to the contrary, the firm never intended to keep the hospital open, according to court filings in the bankruptcy proceeding of the entity that Pipeline formed to acquire Westlake.

“Pursuant to the party’s acquisition agreement, the Westlake Hospital was required to be shut down by June 5th of that same year,” bankruptcy trustee representative Allen Guon said during a hearing last November, according to a court transcript.

The provision requiring the closure of Westlake, which hasn’t been reported before, directly contradicts many statements made by Pipeline and its representatives during the acquisition process and transition.

Emphasis added.

* Related…

* After major shakeup, West Sub pulled from the brink — for now

       

13 Comments
  1. - Responsa - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 10:01 am:

    It’s almost like you can’t trust anything people say. It’s especially egregious and confusing when the same people say completely different things in their public and private discourse.


  2. - He called it! - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 10:06 am:

    Welch called out Eric Whitaker from the beginning. If you check his public statements from day 1 of the announcement, Welch let Whitaker have it. No one should ever trust that Whitaker ever again.


  3. - hisgirlfriday - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 10:19 am:

    Isn’t him being a former head of IDPH more relevant than him being an Obama pal?

    On another note, I think politicians should not serve on hospital boards. Nothing good seems to come of it.


  4. - Bruce( no not him) - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 10:21 am:

    why do people (politicians) lie when there are documents that prove they are lying? Do they expect the truth to never come out? Or do they just don’t care?


  5. - Downstate - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 10:23 am:

    Interesting to note that there are 6 other hospitals within 5 miles of this location, not including a children’s hospital.


  6. - Incandenza - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 10:25 am:

    for profit healthcare means investors will always be lying when they say they’re trying to help: they’re only ever trying to come in and strip the healthcare system for parts


  7. - Socially DIstant Watcher - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 10:41 am:

    What’s Obama got to do with this? He’s got many pals; are we going to mention him every time one of them makes the news?


  8. - walker - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 10:53 am:

    Also notable how venture investors in healthcare are regularly demanding more government funding. It’s SOP for them.

    A significant number of “venture capitalists” ultimately make their profits from taxpayer funding, and evade debts in bankruptcy court, in all sorts of industries. Without government support the venture capital industry itself would be greatly diminished.


  9. - Dan Johnson - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 11:53 am:

    We should probably change our employee and retiree health care pricing to pay non-profit hospitals more than for-profit hospitals. Over time that can help get rid of for-profit hospitals.


  10. - Downstate - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 12:08 pm:

    “Over time that can help get rid of for-profit hospitals”

    A majority of all revenue comes from Medicare or Medicaid for most hospitals. Hence, a hospital’s profitability (and ability to reinvest in new technology, etc.) is driven by patient volume.
    And patient volume is largely driven by quality of service.

    Whether a non-for-profit or for profit enterprise, hospitals don’t want to see reduced volumes. But if they can’t deliver a quality service in an area, they are forced to close their doors. It’s why many non-profit hospitals have had to close.


  11. - Ridgelander - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 4:02 pm:

    “Interesting to note that there are 6 other hospitals within 5 miles of this location, not including a children’s hospital.”

    West Suburban Hospital is located across Austin Blvd from the Austin neighborhood of Chicago, in Oak Park.

    OP has a population of about 52,000; Austin has nearly 100,000 residents; Chicago has a population of about 2,700,000; Cook County has a population of about 5,220,000.

    There is nothing remarkable about the number of hospitals within 5 miles of West Suburban, other than the fact that Pipeline Health closed Westlake Hospital (4 miles from West Sub) and lied about it while doing so.


  12. - Advocate - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 5:07 pm:

    What is the relevance of Whitaker being a pal of Obama? If that is going to be in the headline I’d expect the story to show why it is relevant. Otherwise it seems like using Obama’s name unfairly as clickbait.


  13. - Rich Miller - Monday, Jun 28, 21 @ 5:09 pm:

    ===as clickbait===

    I don’t sell clicks or pageviews. If you’d write an alternate headline, good for you. Get your own blog.


Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.


* Isabel’s afternoon roundup
* After calls for her resignation, Harmon says Feigenholtz 'will need to do additional work in order to rebuild trust with her colleagues and constituents'
* SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Fundraiser list
* GOP pollster has Sorensen ahead by 6; Fioretti closing ad focuses on Dem opposition to Burke; Suburban man charged after punching election judge
* More on election security
* Showcasing The Retailers Who Make Illinois Work
* Question of the day
* C'mon, Harry
* Your early voting reports
* Chicago Bears open thread
* Open thread
* Isabel’s morning briefing
* SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Supplement to today's edition
* SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Today's edition of Capitol Fax (use all CAPS in password)
* Live coverage
* Selected press releases (Live updates)
* Yesterday's stories

Support CapitolFax.com
Visit our advertisers...

...............

...............

...............

...............

...............

...............


Loading


Main Menu
Home
Illinois
YouTube
Pundit rankings
Obama
Subscriber Content
Durbin
Burris
Blagojevich Trial
Advertising
Updated Posts
Polls

Archives
November 2024
October 2024
September 2024
August 2024
July 2024
June 2024
May 2024
April 2024
March 2024
February 2024
January 2024
December 2023
November 2023
October 2023
September 2023
August 2023
July 2023
June 2023
May 2023
April 2023
March 2023
February 2023
January 2023
December 2022
November 2022
October 2022
September 2022
August 2022
July 2022
June 2022
May 2022
April 2022
March 2022
February 2022
January 2022
December 2021
November 2021
October 2021
September 2021
August 2021
July 2021
June 2021
May 2021
April 2021
March 2021
February 2021
January 2021
December 2020
November 2020
October 2020
September 2020
August 2020
July 2020
June 2020
May 2020
April 2020
March 2020
February 2020
January 2020
December 2019
November 2019
October 2019
September 2019
August 2019
July 2019
June 2019
May 2019
April 2019
March 2019
February 2019
January 2019
December 2018
November 2018
October 2018
September 2018
August 2018
July 2018
June 2018
May 2018
April 2018
March 2018
February 2018
January 2018
December 2017
November 2017
October 2017
September 2017
August 2017
July 2017
June 2017
May 2017
April 2017
March 2017
February 2017
January 2017
December 2016
November 2016
October 2016
September 2016
August 2016
July 2016
June 2016
May 2016
April 2016
March 2016
February 2016
January 2016
December 2015
November 2015
October 2015
September 2015
August 2015
July 2015
June 2015
May 2015
April 2015
March 2015
February 2015
January 2015
December 2014
November 2014
October 2014
September 2014
August 2014
July 2014
June 2014
May 2014
April 2014
March 2014
February 2014
January 2014
December 2013
November 2013
October 2013
September 2013
August 2013
July 2013
June 2013
May 2013
April 2013
March 2013
February 2013
January 2013
December 2012
November 2012
October 2012
September 2012
August 2012
July 2012
June 2012
May 2012
April 2012
March 2012
February 2012
January 2012
December 2011
November 2011
October 2011
September 2011
August 2011
July 2011
June 2011
May 2011
April 2011
March 2011
February 2011
January 2011
December 2010
November 2010
October 2010
September 2010
August 2010
July 2010
June 2010
May 2010
April 2010
March 2010
February 2010
January 2010
December 2009
November 2009
October 2009
September 2009
August 2009
July 2009
June 2009
May 2009
April 2009
March 2009
February 2009
January 2009
December 2008
November 2008
October 2008
September 2008
August 2008
July 2008
June 2008
May 2008
April 2008
March 2008
February 2008
January 2008
December 2007
November 2007
October 2007
September 2007
August 2007
July 2007
June 2007
May 2007
April 2007
March 2007
February 2007
January 2007
December 2006
November 2006
October 2006
September 2006
August 2006
July 2006
June 2006
May 2006
April 2006
March 2006
February 2006
January 2006
December 2005
April 2005
March 2005
February 2005
January 2005
December 2004
November 2004
October 2004

Blog*Spot Archives
November 2005
October 2005
September 2005
August 2005
July 2005
June 2005
May 2005

Syndication

RSS Feed 2.0
Comments RSS 2.0




Hosted by MCS SUBSCRIBE to Capitol Fax Advertise Here Mobile Version Contact Rich Miller