05-04-2021    8:38 AM    OPINION

Circa 2008 Campbell County Memorial Hospital became aware of the millions of dollars generated by Sigsbee Duck, a local ENT, and at that time the hospital began actively competing with private practitioners, often putting them out of business or simply assimilating them into the hospital system. At that time they began operating in violation of the Safe Harbor rules, but the Feds stated that there wasn't enough money in a County Hospital to make it worth their time to prosecute it, stating that "in rural areas, federal laws often go out the window" due to it not being cost-effective to pursue it. It is not a County Hospital, that was just the name, but at any rate, they were allowed to violate the law. That violation of the law was participated in by Joe Hallock an attorney on the hospital board who stated that those federal laws were real, and he thought they should consider following them; and by Tom Lubnau, the attorney for Campbell County Hospital District.

Profit is the key word in how Campbell County Hospital District selected which lines of medicine to pursue. In 2012 they announced that a wound care center would be "lucrative," and so instituted a Wound Care Unit.

There is not a lot of money in mental health, so mental health has never been invested in by the Hospital Special District. Patients with mental health problems experiencing a crisis have been turned away from admittance to the 5th floor Psych Unit, with one patient actually being told they would call the police to arrest him but they were not going to admit him for treatment.

In April of 2022 a City Council Member expressed her feelings to the Hospital Board about the disservice they provide to mental health patients.

Urban legend within the medical community has it that in the last 20 years or so at least two CEOs resigned or were forced to resign due to their resistance to the illegal activities being conducted and their refusal to participate. Then a few years ago the hospital board deliberately hired a CEO who had been fired multiple times for illegal and/or unethical behavior. Isn't that interesting? They eventually fired him as well, the reasons never being given.

Urban legend within the medical community has it that the law firm of Michaels & Michaels became millionaires taking cases against Campbell County Memorial Hospital, now known as Campbell County Health. In 2003, before Campbell County Hospital District began outright lying to the public, it was announced that about 20% of the hospital medical staff had problems being able to secure or afford malpractice insurance, and that they were facing a "malpractice crisis."

Some of the providers at Campbell County Health continue to be non-English speaking and/or International Medical School Graduates. One CEO had two foreign internal medicine physicians literally following him around the country, which led to my attempting to find out if they were illegal immigrants. Turns out the Wyoming Board of Medicine makes no inquiry as to whether a doctor is legally in the USA, and ICE doesn't care if the illegal immigrants are "more highly educated." That is just so unfair and un-American, isn't it?

The Americans who work at the hospital are wonderful, loving, caring people, including the traveling para professionals. The leadership and the Board may benefit from some American activities training.