Health Management Issues Statement in Response to Inaccurate “60 Minutes” Report
<0> Health Management Associates, Inc.John C. Merriwether, 239-598-3131Vice President of Financial Relations </0>
today commented on a report regarding the company on the television program .
According to their report, conducted more than a year of research and found no issues with the quality of care at Health Management hospitals, stating on the broadcast that "hardly anyone we talked to complained about the quality of care at HMA hospitals."
It was also notable that failed to identify a single patient who had been inappropriately admitted from any of the company’s emergency rooms, including by the physicians interviewed.
Neither nor the physicians interviewed identified any admission decision in which a physician's medical judgment was overridden by an HMA executive, much less to defraud Medicare.
did not in any way dispute the admissions data it was provided by Health Management over the last several months. That data demonstrated that admissions rates from the company’s emergency rooms were in-line with national norms and consistent over a several year period.
Instead, relied entirely on disgruntled former employees of the company and former contracted physicians, several of whom are seeking financial gain through active litigation with Health Management.
On November 30, 2012, just after being notified that was moving forward with its broadcast, Health Management held a conference call in which it provided key data about admissions from its emergency rooms. The information presented on the call, and additional information added since the program’s airing, are instructive about the segment and available for viewing on the Investor Relations section of HMA.com.
Health Management enables America’s best local health care by providing the people, processes, capital and expertise necessary for its hospital and physician partners to fulfill their local missions of delivering superior health care services. Health Management, through its subsidiaries, operates 70 hospitals with approximately 10,500 licensed beds in non-urban communities located throughout the United States.
All references to “Health Management,” “HMA” or the “Company” used in this release refer to Health Management Associates, Inc. and its affiliates.
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions and are identified by words such as "expects," "estimates," "projects," "anticipates," "believes," “intends,” "plans," “may,” “continues,” “should,” "could" and other similar words. All statements addressing operating performance, events or developments that Health Management Associates, Inc. expects or anticipates will occur in the future, including but not limited to incurrence of indebtedness, projections of revenue, income or loss, capital expenditures, earnings per share, debt structure, the provision for doubtful accounts, capital structure, repayment of indebtedness, the amount and timing of funds under the meaningful use measurement standard of various HCIT incentive programs, other financial items and operating statistics, statements regarding the plans and objectives of management for future operations, innovations, or market service development, statements regarding acquisitions, joint ventures, divestitures and other proposed or contemplated transactions (including but not limited to statements regarding the potential for future acquisitions and perceived benefits of acquisitions), statements of future economic performance, statements regarding legal proceedings and other loss contingencies, statements regarding market risk exposures, statements regarding the effects and/or interpretations of recently enacted or future health care laws and regulations, statements of the assumptions underlying or relating to any of the foregoing statements, and other statements which are other than statements of historical fact, are considered to be "forward-looking statements."
Because they are forward-looking, such statements should be evaluated in light of important risk factors and uncertainties. These risk factors and uncertainties are more fully described in Health Management Associates, Inc.'s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended June 30, 2012, including under the heading entitled "Risk Factors." Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of Health Management Associates, Inc.'s underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could vary materially from those currently anticipated. In addition, undue reliance should not be placed on Health Management Associates, Inc.'s forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, Health Management Associates, Inc. disclaims any obligation to update its risk factors or to publicly announce updates to the forward-looking statements contained in this press release to reflect new information, future events or other developments.