Wikipedia

Michael Drobot

Michael Drobot is a convicted felon who pleaded guilty to orchestrating the largest fraud in the history of California state.[1] Between 1978 and 2013, Drobot managed 28 hospitals along the East Coast, including the Mount Sinai Roosevelt in New York (formerly the Roosevelt Medical Center). At the time of his crimes and arrest, he owned Pacific Hospital of Long Beach (now College Medical Center).[2]

Career

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Early years in hospital administration

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Drobot spent his early years in Detroit, Michigan, before joining the United States Navy during the Vietnam War. During his time in the Navy, Drobot managed the Naval Hospital in Oakland, California. Upon his discharge from the Navy, Drobot pursued a career in hospital management by first obtaining an MBA in hospital administration from George Washington University.

Healthcare administration in California

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Drobot's Concept Health Group, Inc. acquired the Healthcare Medical Center of Tustin in July 1990.[3] Drobot had been the executive director of Healthcare Medical Center from 1980 to 1984. Under Drobot, Concept Healthcare expanded the hospital’s services deeper into the Irvine area, and added new centers for oncology and sports medicine.

In the course of his 35 years career in healthcare, Drobot had the longest association with the Pacific Hospital of Long Beach, which he owned and managed from 1997 to 2013, when it was sold to Molina Healthcare and became College Medical Center.[4][5][6] Whilst CEO of Pacific Hospital, the hospital was nationally recognized for infection control measures.[7][8][9] The hospital’s focus on a germ free environment garnered a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition in 2009.[10][11] Pacific Hospital of Long Beach received an award from the Southern California Patient Safety First (SCPSF) for reducing sepsis mortality and hospital associated infection rates from 2010 to 2012.[12][13]

In 2013, Pacific Hospital of Long Beach was accredited by National Integrated Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations[14][15][16][17] for meeting its standards of patient care and quality management. In 2013, the hospital was also designated as ISO 9001:3008 compliant by DNV Healthcare,[18] an accreditor of US hospitals integrating ISO 9001 quality compliance with the Medicare Conditions of Participation.

Convictions and lawsuits

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During a criminal investigation, in February 2014, Drobot was charged by the FBI with orchestrating a wide-ranging conspiracy and paying illegal kickbacks.[19][20] As part of the indictment, Drobot was charged with bribing Senator Ron Calderon to preserve California’s spinal pass through law.[21][22][23][24] Senator Calderon was separately indicted by the FBI for accepting bribes and kickbacks from Drobot and others. Drobot signed a plea agreement agreeing to cooperate in the government’s ongoing investigation of Senator Calderon and his brother, Tom Calderon, and also into the healthcare fraud scheme known as Operation Spinal Cap.[25][26][27]

In October 2014, Drobot, along with his business partners, was sued for using counterfeit screws and hardware in spinal surgeries[28] performed at Pacific Hospital and other area hospitals. At a court hearing on February 20, 2015, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Elihu M. Berle rejected the claims against the group accused of using counterfeit surgical screws as in 29 out of 32 cases the plaintiffs were never treated at Pacific Hospital.[29] Drobot filed a $50 million defamation suit in October 2014 against attorneys Brian Kabateck and Robert Hutchinson and the law firms of Kabateck Brown Kellner, Cotchett Pitre & McCarthy, and Knox Ricksen.[30] In April 2015, Drobot and his company Healthsmart Pacific, Inc. filed a lawsuit against 30 individuals and their attorneys for falsely and maliciously claiming that Drobot and Healthsmart’s former hospital, Pacific Hospital of Long Beach, harmed them via a non-existent "counterfeit screw" conspiracy. Drobot has agreed to cooperate fully with prosecutors in a case that U.S. attorney’s office spokesman, Thom Mrozek, has said "remains active and ongoing."[31]

In 2018, he was sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to pay $10 million to the federal government in forfeiture. Subsequently, federal prosecutors further charged him with wire fraud, among other crimes. To these, Drobot pled guilty in 2019 and his house and other assets were seized by the government.[2]

He was released from prison in 2023.[2]

References

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  1. ^ "Long Beach Pacific Hospital fraud called largest in California history". 2014-02-21.
  2. ^ a b c "Ex-owner of Long Beach Hospital sentenced to prison in forfeiture case". Press Telegram. 2023-11-17. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  3. ^ Woodyard, Chris (July 7, 1990). "Tustin Hospital Acquired by Washington Company". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  4. ^ "Pacific Hospital of Long Beach". Pacific Hospital of Long Beach. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  5. ^ Maio, Pat (October 8, 2013). "Health chain buys Pacific Hospital of Long Beach". The Orange County Register. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  6. ^ Woodyard, Chris (July 7, 1990). "Tustin Hospital Acquired by Washington Company". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  7. ^ Sarah Varney (March 17, 2011). "Preventing Hospital-Acquired Infections". The California Report (Podcast). KQED Public Radio. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
  8. ^ Varney, Sarah (March 28, 2011). "Hospitals Face New Pressure To Cut Infection Rates". NPR. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  9. ^ "Welcome to Molina Healthcare of California".
  10. ^ "Pacific Hospital Receives Congressional Award for During International Infection Prevention Week". Pacific Hospital of Long Beach. April 23, 2013. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  11. ^ "WELCOME TO THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PATIENT SAFETY FIRST (SCPSF) COLLABORATIVE RESOURCE PAGE!" (Press release). Hospital Association of Southern California: nhfca.org. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
  12. ^ Floressantos, Francisco. "Pacific Hospital Long Beach – Reducing Hospital-Acquired Infections Across the Board". California HealthCare News. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  13. ^ How to stop hospital infections on YouTube
  14. ^ Pizzi, Richard (September 29, 2008). "Medicare approves new hospital accreditation organization". Healthcare Financial. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  15. ^ "DNV Healthcare Inc's Accreditation Program for Hospitals Approved by CMS" (PDF) (Press release). nhfca.org. April 29, 2009. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  16. ^ Floressantos, Francisco. "Pacific Hospital Long Beach – Reducing Hospital-Acquired Infections Across the Board". California HealthCare News. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  17. ^ How to stop hospital infections on YouTube
  18. ^ Kenney, Lynn (2013). "HOSPITAL ACCREDITING ORGANIZATIONS OFFER DIFFERENT APPROACHES TO THE SURVEY PROCESS". American Hospital Association. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  19. ^ "Former Owner of Long Beach Hospital Charged in Health Care Fraud Scheme That Paid Tens of Millions of Dollars in Kickbacks for Referrals for Spinal Surgeries Billed to Workers' Comp Programs" (Press release). Central District of California: FBI.gov. February 21, 2014. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
  20. ^ Edwards, Andrew (April 24, 2014). "Former Pacific Hospital owner Michael Drobot pleads guilty in fraud case". Press-Telegram. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  21. ^ "California State Senator Ronald Calderon Charged with Taking Bribes in Exchange for Official Acts on Behalf of Hospital Owner and Independent Film Studio That was Actually an FBI Front" (Press release). Central District of California: FBI.gov. February 21, 2014.
  22. ^ Aguilera, Elizabeth (February 21, 2014). "A Calderon connection: Ex-hospital chief Michael Drobot admits to bribery, conspiracy". 89.3KPCC. Retrieved April 25, 2015.
  23. ^ Aaronson, Trevor (October 30, 2013). "FBI: California state senator aided alleged multimillion-dollar fraud". Aljazeera America. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  24. ^ Rosenhall, Laurel (June 14, 2013). "California lawmakers tussled over payments for spinal implants". The Sacramento Bee. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  25. ^ Thompson, Authur (2001). Crafting and Executing Strategy: The Quest for Competitive Advantage. McGraw-Hill/Irvin. ISBN 9780072319804.
  26. ^ Coker, Mike (February 25, 2014). "Michael D. Drobot Signs Plea Deal to Testify Against Slimed Legislator Ron Calderon". OCWeekly. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  27. ^ "Operation "Spinal Cap" - Former Long Beach Hospital Owner Charged in $500 Million Scheme" (Press release). California Statewide Law Enforcement Association for Lodge #77: CSLEA Management. February 25, 2014.{{cite press release}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  28. ^ Foshay, Karen (October 17, 2014). "Spinal surgery patients file lawsuits alleging counterfeit hardware was implanted in their spines". 89.3KPCC. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  29. ^ Coker, Mike (March 6, 2015). "Michael D. Drobot and His Former Pacific Hospital of Long Beach Win a Round in Court". OCWeekly. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  30. ^ Coker, Mike (October 28, 2014). "Michael D. Drobot of Pacific Hospital Fame Files $50 mil Defamation Suit Against Lawyers". OCWeekly. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
  31. ^ "Ex-hospital executive in kickback scheme looks to spread the blame". 13 April 2015.
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