Hospitals in Denial, Inmates with lawyers, Haley Barbour Boondoggle Pt 589, Spice Is not Nice, BB King comes home.
A former employee of a Mississippi hospital is getting almost $3.5 million as part of a string of settlements where 18 hospitals in seven states have agreed to pay $20.4 million over allegations they broke federal law by receiving Medicare reimbursements for psychiatric services that were not "medically reasonable or necessary."
Ryan Ladner worked for Allegiance Health Management at what's now Merit Health Wesley in Hattiesburg.
As the person who brought the fraud to the attention of the federal government, Ladner is getting 17 percent of the settlement amounts. None of the hospitals admit liability in their settlements. [Associated Press]
The Justice Department found that both facilities "fail to protect prisoners from violence by other prisoners and from improper use of force by staff."
The investigation also found the two jails were detaining prisoners beyond court-ordered release dates.[Mississippi Press]
The Collapse of the Haley Barbour Boondoggle: The decision by a group of electrical cooperatives to pull out of planned purchase of 15 percent of a Kemper County power plant is likely to mean a credit downgrade for Mississippi Power Co. Fitch Ratings said Friday that it plans to review the credit rating of the unit of Atlanta-based Southern Co., predicting it will fall at least one notch and maybe two. The South Mississippi Electric Power Association said Wednesday that it's pulling out of a planned $600 million purchase of a share of the $6.2 billion plant that Mississippi Power is building in Kemper County. [Associated Press]
Spice use in the state of Mississippi has grown exponentially over the past month. WREG reported as of April 2, 317 were rushed to the hospital after taking it. Now the Mississippi State Department of Health is saying that number has risen to 1,204. It’s also believed to be the cause of death for 17 people.
A funeral director says he's prepared for lines around the block for a public viewing of blues legend B.B. King in Las Vegas. King died May 14 at age 89, and the open-casket event from 3 to 7 p.m. Friday at Palm South Jones Mortuary begins a week-long series of memorials. Mortuary manager Matt Phillips says viewers can file past King's casket, but there'll be a strict no-photos rule. King's daughter, Shirley King, is hosting a Friday night musical tribute at the Brooklyn Bowl on the Las Vegas Strip. A Saturday family-and-friends service is set at a Las Vegas chapel. [WLOX]
