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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 13, 2019)
SPORTS Inside Wrong way driver on I-84, 2A Public impeachment hearings begin, 10A Mounties win on PKs Follow us on the web Nove 13, 2019 • $1.50 WEDNESDA W E DNESD D A Y • November Traffic may slow in Union ■ Council votes to purchase radar speed sign Good day to our valued subscriber Kent Hug of La Grande GRANDE RONDE HOSPITAL UNDER SCRUTINY: Former La Grande cardiologist accused of implanting unnecessary pacemakers By Dick Mason The Observer More motor vehicle driv- ers in Union may soon fi nd themselves easing off their accelerators. The Union City Council voted Tuesday night to have the city purchase a radar speed sign for $3,265. The portable sign will display the speeds vehicles are traveling and will serve two purposes — slow drivers down by alert- ing them of their speed and collect traffi c data. The data will indicate how frequently drivers exceed the speed limit, the average speed traveled, traffi c volume and more, said City of Union Administrator Doug Wig- gins. The sign, which will be powered by rechargeable batteries, will be attached to posts and easy to move. Union Mayor Leonard Flint supported the pur- chase of the sign, noting that it would help the city crack down on speeders. He explained that the city, using data from the radar sign, would be able to recommend that the Union County Sheriff’s Offi ce patrol certain areas. It was suggested at the meeting that the council might be wise to purchase two radar signs instead of one. Flint though said this would not be necessary considering how portable the sign will be. He also said he believes the city should see how successful one sign is before it purchases a second. In other matters at Tues- day’s meeting, the council discussed the status of the home buildings at the old Union ranger station. The ranger station, near the northwest edge of town, was built in 1937 and deeded to the City of Union in 1993. The ranger station has a four-bedroom house, a three- bedroom house, a two-bed- room house, an old oil stor- age building, a barn, a utility building, a utility garage and See Union / Page 5A Andrew Cutler/EO Media Group A recently unsealed federal whistleblower lawsuit claimed that a longtime Portland-area cardiologist, Emilia Arden, implanted more than 100 patients with unnecessary pacemakers at La Grande’s Grande Ronde Hospital. By Nick Budnick, Portland Tribune PORTLAND — A recently unsealed federal whistleblower lawsuit claimed that a longtime Portland-area cardiologist, Emilia Arden, implanted more than 100 patients with unnecessary pacemakers at Grande Ronde Hospital in Eastern Oregon. The whistleblower dropped the case late last that Medicare was reimbursed for potentially inap- month, however, leaving unanswered questions in propriate surgeries. Ford said the hospital investi- its wake about whether the allegations were true. gated but the fi ndings are confi dential. The lawyer who fi led the case says those questions “After concerns were raised regarding pace- should be answered. maker implants, the hospital voluntarily “These are some of the most egregious performed an internal investigation,” she allegations in a (whistleblower suit) that wrote. “That investigation is covered by I’ve seen,” said Jason T. Brown, a former FBI Oregon’s peer review privilege. Dr. Arden agent whose New Jersey law practice spe- is no longer employed by the hospital. The cializes in whistleblower cases in which the hospital issued certain Medicare reimburse- Arden plaintiff can collect a percentage of money ment refunds.” recouped by the federal government. The suit alleged that Arden was “induced” Brown fi led the case on behalf of Kathy On- by gifts such as free travel from device maker sales wezen, a cardiology nurse practitioner who worked representatives. at Grande Ronde Hospital in La Grande. She Worked in Portland area dropped the case after federal offi cials determined Before working at Grande Ronde Hospital, Ar- the hospital already had refunded Medicare for den worked in Portland, Hillsboro and Beaverton any inappropriate surgery reimbursements, limit- for a decade. She had staff privileges to perform ing the suit’s ability to recoup funds, according to surgeries at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center Brown. in southwest Portland from 2007 to 2015 and “I think anybody who was seen by this doctor implanted “lots” of pacemakers there, according to should be notifi ed” and consult with an indepen- a Grande Ronde Hospital newsletter. dent cardiologist, Brown said. “If someone got In Portland, she appears to have worked with an unnecessary heart operation, then from my the same device maker sales representatives she perspective they deserve compensation.” later did at Grande Ronde. The sales reps often at- Arden, 60, the cardiologist named in the suit, tend surgeries to provide technical support. did not respond to requests for comments. Nor did “Both reps had worked with her (at St. Vincent) Onwezen. before, so that was very helpful,” a nurse said in an In an email, Mardi Ford, the hospital’s com- article in the Grande Ronde Hospital newsletter munications director, substantiated signifi cant See Scrutiny / Page 5A elements of the lawsuit as well as Brown’s account Other cases Allegations of bribes and kickbacks to promote sales have plagued device manufac- turers over the last decade. In 2014, for instance, Bio- tronik, a German fi rm whose U.S. headquarters are in Lake Oswego, paid a $4.9 million settlement to the federal gov- ernment over alleged kick- backs. Biotronik was named in the Arden lawsuit. In 2011, St. Jude — a subsidiary of Abbott also named in the suit — paid $16 million to settle a federal probe of alleged kickbacks to doctors. And the Oregon Department of Justice sued two Salem doctors for failing to notify pa- tients they had received special payments for using Biotronik products. The device manufac- turers have consistently denied wrongdoing. — Nick Budnick, Portland Tribune “After concerns were raised regarding pacemaker implants, the hospital voluntarily performed an internal investigation. That investigation is covered by Oregon’s peer review privilege. Dr. Arden is no longer employed by the hospital. The hospital issued certain Medicare reimbursement refunds.” — Mardi Ford, Grande Ronde Hospital communications director WEATHER INDEX Business ...... 1B Classified ..... 3B Comics ......... 7B Crossword ... 5B Dear Abby .... 8B Horoscope ... 5B Lottery.......... 2A Obituaries .... 3A FRIDAY Opinion ........ 4A Sports .......... 6A Sudoku ........ 7B Weather ....... 8B LEGO ROBOTICS CLUB Full forecast on the back of B section Tonight Thursday 32 LOW 55/31 Partly cloudy Partly sunny CONTACT US HAVE A STORY IDEA? 541-963-3161 Call The Observer newsroom at 541-963-3161 or send an email to news@lagrandeobserver.com. More contact info on Page 4A. Issue 135 3 sections, 26 pages La Grande, Oregon Online at lagrandeobserver.com
