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Monday, July 17, 2006

Ind. Gov't. - State Ethics Commission to review aspect of state hospital privatization

The Richmond Palladium-Item has a report today by Bill Engle headlined "Ethics panel will rule on hospital plan." Here are some quotes:

The Indiana State Ethics Commission should rule next month on whether Richmond State Hospital Superintendent Jeff Butler is operating within state ethics laws in leading an organization hoping to run the state hospital.

The ethics commission met Thursday and discussed two questions regarding a proposal from Behavioral Healthcare Services, Inc., a local non-profit that Butler is a member of that has made a proposal to run the state hospital.

But the ethics commission tabled further discussion and is expected to rule on two questions when it meets Aug. 15.

The questions are:

Do state ethics laws prevent Butler from accepting employment with a non-profit if that group's proposal to the Indiana Family and Social Service Agency is accepted and he is no longer a state employee? And

Do state ethics laws prevent Butler from assisting the non-profit in negotiating with the FSSA?

Officials at FSSA brought the questions to the ethics commission as a precaution in the ongoing discussions regarding Behavioral Healthcare Services' proposal to run the state hospital. Behavioral Healthcare's proposal was the only one received.

Butler testified before the commission, as did FSSA attorney John Davis.

"I think Jeff was very persuasive," Davis said. "The ethics issue is bigger than Jeff Butler. It is really about the whole project and all the employees at the state hospital."

Davis said commission members had a number of questions about the plan.

"It's regrettable that a decision didn't come because a lot of people are waiting on this," Davis said.

The FSSA earlier this year called for proposals for local non-profit agencies to run the state hospital.

Here are some earlier ILB entries on proposed privatization of Richmond and Evansville state hospitals.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on July 17, 2006 07:40 AM
Posted to Indiana Government