Background:
When Rick Scott Ran Columbia/HCA Florida's Pension Fund Was Invested In His Company And Lost Money Due To The Fraud He Oversaw At HCA.
Florida's Pension Fund Sued Columbia/HCA, Alleging Rick Scott And Other Executives Mismanaged The Company Causing Florida's Pension Fund To Lose Tens Of Millions Of Dollars. According to the Tampa Tribune, in August 1997, "Florida's pension fund filed suit against embattled hospital chain Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corp. Friday, accusing the company of a string of unsavory acts that have threatened the investments of state employees and retirees. ...The lawsuit had been quietly planned by Florida pension officials for more than a month and follows a similar action by New York's pension fund earlier this week. Florida has about $ 115.5 million invested…The value of the stock has dropped by nearly one-third since this spring, when the federal investigation into allegations of Medicare fraud escalated." [Tampa Tribune, 8/16/97]
Other States' Pension Funds Suffered Too
At Least A Dozen Pension Funds, With Combined Equity In Columbia/HCA Worth $466 Million, Sued Columbia Alleging Rick Scott And Other Executives Inflated Profits Using Fraud. According to the Atlanta Business Chronicle, in December 1997, "At least a dozen pension funds, with a combined equity stake in Columbia worth $ 466 million, have sued the health-care giant in federal court in Nashville, Tenn., alleging the healthcare company's top executives improperly inflated the stock's price in connection with alleged Medicare fraud. Those lawsuits, filed in November, allege securities law violations." [Atlanta Business Chronicle, 12/19/97]
The Trustee Of The New York State Public Pension Fund Sued 11 Columbia Officials, Including Rick Scott, Said Company And Shareholders "Should Not Have to Pay The Price" For Officials' "Reckless Mismanagement And Abuse Of Control." In August, 1997 the New York Times reported: "The trustee for the New York State public pension fund sued 11 current and former executives and directors of the Columbia/ HCA Healthcare Corporation yesterday, saying that they had allowed 'pervasive and systemic' criminal fraud to flourish throughout the company. The suit, filed in Federal District Court in Nashville, where Columbia is based, was brought by H. Carl McCall, the New York State Comptroller and the trustee for the state's common retirement fund... In the suit, Mr. McCall contends that company executives had engaged in several unlawful activities, including illegal billing of the Federal Medicare program, improperly offering jobs or perquisites to executives at hospitals Columbia was trying to acquire and insider trading...The suit names as defendants the entire board of the company, including the current chairman, Thomas F. Frist Jr. It also names Richard L. Scott, who resigned as chairman and chief executive last month... 'The reckless mismanagement and abuse of control by certain officials with Columbia/HCA has resulted in one of the most extensive and widespread Federal fraud investigations in history,' Mr. McCall said. 'The company and its shareholders should not have to pay the price for the fraudulent actions of these individuals.'" [New York Times, 8/15/1997]
Rick Scott And Other Executives Eventually Settled McCall Suit In 2003 For $14 Million. According to Modern Healthcare, in February, 2003, "HCA has agreed to meet rigorous good-governance standards to settle a shareholder lawsuit. The chain will adopt stricter practices than either those proposed by the New York Stock Exchange or required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the federal law approved last year to protect investors… HCA also agreed to pay $14 million in the settlement, which the company said will be covered by its officers' and directors' insurance carriers." In addition to the settlement, plaintiffs were awarded $4.6 million for legal costs. [Modern Healthcare, 2/10/03; Middle District of Tennessee, 3:97-cv-00838]
Columbia Employees Alleged That Scott's Mismanagement Hurt Their Own Pension Fund
Two Columbia Employees Filed A Class Action Suit Against Columbia/HCA Alleging The Company's Pension Fund Was Mismanaged, Possibly Costing 10,000 Employees $250 Million In Retirement Savings. In December 1997, the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported that, "Trustees of Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corp.'s stock-bonus plan invested almost all of the plan's assets in the company's stock but failed to diversify as the share price plummeted in 1997, according to a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Atlanta. Such an investment strategy may have cost some 10,000 Columbia employees more than $ 250 million in anticipated retirement funds as a federal Medicare-fraud investigation crippled the stock this year, according to the lawsuit and supporting documents." [Atlanta Business Chronicle, 12/19/97]