A Real-Time Experiment in the Relevancy of Blogging

I've been hinting at this project for a while, and finally had enough time this past weekend to put it into motion. A life on the road does not leave a lot of down time.

Here's the set-up: In August 2005, I finally met one-on-one with Congressman Howard Coble at his Asheboro office to discuss my case. Let's just say it took a long time to get that appointment. I inquired as to why so many federal agencies find it unnecessary to (1) respond to a citizen's correspondence and (2) enforce the law. I seem to recall that the Congressman joked that the wheels of government work slowly, but I've been writing letters for several years now, so that joke fell very flat.

During the meeting, the Congressman made some promises that he did not keep (about following up on my case with federal agencies), and I sent a follow-up letter in January of this year. No response.

In exasperation, I finally showed up unannounced on the doorstep of his Girl-Friday, Rebecca Redding, in Asheboro on March 23. She made some (trite) excuses for the delay, and suggested that I send yet another letter to the IRS and/or US Attorney's Office. She promised once that was done, the Congressman would send out a "letter of interest" (which supposedly lights a fire). Rebecca also suggested that I "be concise", and keep any correspondence to one page (apparently government bureaucrats have very short attention spans, and cannot be troubled with details we ordinary mortals are mired in).

Never mind that I have already written both of these agencies on multiple occasions, and composed summaries, both short and long to no avail. Never mind that, to date, I have not received the courtesy of even one written response . . . and Congressman Coble was supposed to make inquires about that. I am supposed to go back to square one again.

I've been especially disgusted with USDHHS. For if that agency had moved to enforce the terms of the National Health Service Corps site agreement with Randolph Medical Associates when I made my first desperate phone call to their field office in Atlanta in1998, Laurie Anderson and I would be enjoying our seventh year in private pediatric practice now. The older cousin of FEMA is worthless. Some have suggested that instead of concentrating on the people who actually committed the misdeeds, I should have sued (for negligence) the agency that let them get away with it. It's an easy case to make. But it wasn't my style.

This is how government works. It ignores unpleasant or embarrassing issues (that reveals its tendency towards apathy, waste, ignorance and incompetence) until people give up and "just go away".

I wasn't very happy with Rebecca when I left Howard's office. Same old, same old. She's nice enough, but she is also well-placed in the same local social circles of thosewithnohonor I accuse. Despite her inquires as to my sainted Mother's health & well-being, I have no illusions about her really being in my corner.

But I am going to cooperate;)

Lately there has been a lot of talk in the blogosphere (or at least the small chunk of it that I regularly peruse) about "civility" and the meaningful exchange of ideas. There has also been a lot of talk about the relevancy of blogging. "One voice can change the world", says the Greensboro News & Record (so far the problem with that theory, at least where their editorial staff is concerned, is that some voices are more important than others). Ed Cone, Sue, Roch and the rest all insist that blogging is a viable way of moving stories forward, especially stories that might not otherwise see the light of day.

I'm going to given them a chance now to PROVE IT.

It's simple really . . . a "real time" experiment AND lesson in civics. For your consideration (and entertainment) are posted two letters, dated yesterday, which will be mailed tomorrow or the next day at the latest. Every week I will blog on the progress of this simple (and very reasonable) request (given the evidence I've uncovered and put together), which is to meet with IRS officials and US Attorneys in Greensboro in September to discuss the criminal merits of my case.

You get to be me, step by painful (and if experience is an indicator, probably futile) step.

LETTER NUMBER ONE is addressed to the IRS Taxpayer Advocate Office and US District Attorney Anna Mills S. Wagoner (both of whom I have written before). With Number 10 Font, the text fits on one page (HAH!!! Take that!):


May 8, 2006

Taxpayer Advocate Office
320 Federal Place, Room 125
Greensboro, N.C. 27401

US District Attorney Anna Mills S. Wagoner
PO Box 1858
Greensboro, N.C. 27402

Dear Sir/Ma'am,

On multiple occasions over the last three years I have written the IRS and US Attorney's office (in Greensboro) about illegal conduct, during civil litigation, on the part of "non-profit" Randolph Hospital & Randolph Medical Associates (RMA) administrators in Asheboro, North Carolina. Neither the US Attorney's office nor the IRS has ever offered the courtesy of a response.

As a matter of review, I am a former National Health Service Corps (NHSC) physician who served in Asheboro, N.C. (my hometown) from 1996 through 1998. In January 1998, just before my NHSC obligation ended, I was compelled to intervene in the care of a critically-ill newborn infant who was being mismanaged by another physician. I answered the nurses' call that night despite being previously threatened with termination if I questioned the actions or behavior of other physicians without the approval of RMA'ss Director. The infant survived . . . by all accounts, because of my quick & clinically correct actions. I reported the incident to medical peer review. Immediately after I completed my obligation to the NHSC (approximately two weeks after the incident), I was suddenly fired in a manner that prevented the smooth transition of my practice - one built with the assistance of the taxpayer. Out on my own, I was a competitive threat to the hospital-owned practice, and administrators went to great lengths to make me shut up and "just go away". RMA essentially absorbed my practice as its own while using public resources to put every roadblock it could in my path. This was in direct violation of the NHSC-RMA site agreement. Litigation ensued, all of it settled in my favor in 2001. I subsequently uncovered evidence of litigation misconduct, and reported it to a number of local, state and federal agencies. Local law enforcement officials have thus far refused to investigate the case, much less prosecute it.

At the instruction of Congressman Howard Coble's office, I am writing your office again. The original case has been described as "very complicated". However, now the case is very simple. Randolph Hospital/RMA administrators lied under Oath during discovery, and at settlement negotiations, about the "confidentiality" of their non-profit books and salaries. This information is, in fact, public record, and must be released/revealed upon request. The records that were withheld (specifically IRS 990 returns) were very relevant to the fair & equitable calculation of my damages, and reveal that I was significantly short-changed at settlement - even as hospital administrators stuffed their own pockets on the public's dime. IRS and US Code (as well as NC Statute) are clear that the actions of Randolph Hospital/RMA administrators constitute perjury, contempt, bad-faith and fraud. My allegations are meticulously and very specifically spelled out in the packet of documents that are enclosed with this letter.

The whole point of the three years of litigation (including fighting off a bogus and completely debunked "libel" claim) was to be in a position to restore the practice Randolph Hospital & RMA officials destroyed. I first turned to the government I served for protection, and then the legal system for justice. Both have thus far failed me miserably. Perjury has no statute of limitations, and I would like to meet with IRS officials and US Attorneys to discuss the case (preferably sometime in September, in Greensboro), including any criminal causes of action, or sanctions that are available to remedy this situation under the law. Not too long ago, the IRS announced a crack-down on non-profits, and this case certain falls under that purview.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.


Mary H. Johnson, M.D., FAAP


The SECOND LETTER is addressed to Rebecca Redding:

May 8, 2006

Rebecca Redding
Office of Congressman Howard Coble
222 Sunset Avenue, Suite 101
Asheboro, N.C. 27203

Rebecca,

Thank you for taking time to talk with me on March 23. As a matter of review, after my scheduled meeting with Congressman Coble eight months ago (in August 2005), I was under the impression that the Congressman was going to follow up on correspondence/complaints I have already filed with (1) the United States Department of Health and Human Services, (2) the US District Attorney's Office and (3) the Internal Revenue Service. However, apart from sending me a copy of new federal whistle-blower protection (which does absolutely nothing to help me), I got no further follow-up on my visit. I sent the Congressman correspondence on January 27, and received no response. That is why I visited your office again.

As you will recall, your suggestion was to send new correspondence to both the IRS and US District Attorney and notify you as soon as that was done, so you could follow with a "letter of interest" from the Congressman. It is the umpteenth time I have been sent back to square one.

Rebecca, very respectfully, over the last several years, I have sent the IRS and the US Attorney's Office correspondence on this matter, on multiple occasions, by both regular and certified mail. Both the IRS and US Attorney's Office have had all of the information they need to take some kind of action in my case - be it criminal prosecution or sanctions, or lending the weight & influence of the federal government in renewed civil action. If the government had defended one of its own when this mess started, and moved quickly to enforce all of the terms of the NHSC site agreement eight years ago, we would not be having this conversation.

The matter is NOT at all "complicated" now. Randolph Hospital officials lied under Oath during a civil action about matters of public record in order to save their hospital a substantial sum at settlement. What they kept for themselves (by deception and subterfuge) might have enabled me to re-establish the practice they destroyed/absorbed as their own. Any "release" I signed at settlement was therefore negotiated in BAD FAITH. The actions of these "non-profit" administrators constitute PERJURY, CONTEMPT and FRAUD. I know Congressman Coble, as a member of the House Judiciary Committee (who aspires to be chairman), understands that perjury is a serious offense. With all of the talk in Washington (and Raleigh) about "ethics", the Federal Government has no excuses as it continues to condone this kind of abuse of a physician in public service.

As I have said before, I am very grateful for the Congressman's help (in 1998) when his intervention prompted USDHHS officials to belatedly hold Randolph Medical Associates (RMA) to at least one of the terms of their National Health Service Corps site agreement (i.e. paying my malpractice "tail" coverage). However, DHHS dropped the ball in every other aspect of that case - from (1) immediately enforcing the "non-interference" clause of the NHSC site agreement, to (2) assisting me with litigation against RMA, to (3) coming to my defense when I was unsuccessfully sued for "libel" (after reporting my experience in Asheboro directly to Secretary Shalala). Now, given irrefutable evidence of illegal behavior on the part of non-profit executives against a physician in public service, it is time for Congressman Coble to do what he said he would do, and follow up with a "letter of interest".

Very simply and specifically, I would like to meet with representatives from the US Attorney's Office AND the IRS, preferably in Greensboro. My schedule is open from mid-to late September. Correspondence to both the IRS and US Attorney (Anna Mills S. Wagoner in Greensboro) is enclosed. Their offices were also provided with all appropriate supporting documentation.

Rebecca, I certainly understand how difficult it may be for both you and the Congressman to take action that may be detrimental to people of prominence in Asheboro - people who have supported the Congressman. I have no doubt that you yourself "run" in the same social circles of those I accuse. But right is right and wrong is wrong.

As you know, the more "complicated" aspects of my story and this case are posted on my website (www.asheboropediatrics.com). This letter will be posted on the website - as well as my blog (www.drjshousecalls.blogspot.com). I plan to regularly blog the progress of this request, and share with the public, in real time, exactly how quickly the government moves . . . how justly it operates (in terms of holding those charged with the public good accountable for their misdeeds) . . . and how fairly/equally it treats ALL of its citizens under the law.

I already know how good and faithful public service is rewarded.

By the way, my Mother is fine. She turns seventy next week. And she'd like to see justice done for her daughter. She'd like to see me home and happy.

Sincerely,

Mary H. Johnson, M.D., FAAP

I know the close of the letter to Rebecca was a tad snarky. But I've put up with eight years of the jurisdictional duck & dodge. I have earned some snark rights.

A number of people have asked me why I do not just take this case to an attorney and sue the pants off Randolph Hospital. The biggest reason is I should not have to. It is abundantly clear that the law was broken here . . . and that the process of "justice" (whatever that means) was corrupted. Why would I submit myself to another round? There's also the little matter of attorneys not wanting to take a case just because a plaintiff is right, they want to be able to win with as little work as possible. In my case, the IRS issuing sanctions or the government prosecuting the perjury/contempt (or filing a brief on my behalf) would make a civil case so much easier to make. And frankly, it's the least the federal government could do . . . since it had no part of my back for all of eight years . . . while I flailed and fought alone.

For years, I've also hoped against hope that there was the tiniest shred of common professional empathy/decency left in Randolph Hospital's medical staff, and they would collectively rise to challenge the despicable behavior of senior hospital administrators (and maybe take away the rubber stamp of its Board of Directors). Every member of that staff knows I got the royal screw . . . and in the beginning a number of prominent doctors (several of whom either my parents or I considered "friend") jumped to my defense. Most sheepishly withdrew when Bob Morrison told them to mind their own business (even though their "business" is supposed be to about good medicine, not medical cover-ups). Since that time most of the colleagues I worked with most closely have left Asheboro behind in the dust. Only those who played the game - or who did not need to play - stayed. When I sent my second letter to Howard Coble, I also mailed one to the entire Randolph Hospital medical staff. That letter , addressed to Chief of Staff Craig Gaccione (a player in the 1998 incident) is posted on the APeds website. Silence. I know where I stand. And I know what "institutional ethics" really means.

Local law enforcement is a joke. Randolph District Attorney Garland Yates and his minions have locked themselves in their office and refused to talk to me for going on three years. Garland shot down an SBI investigation before it could even start, and has yet to answer a single correspondence. Sherrif Litchard Hurley and Police Chief Gary Mason say their hands are tied unless the DA directs them to take action. The whole thing is backwards, as I was under the impression that when a crime is reported, it had be investigated BEFORE the DA took (or did not take) action. The victim of a misdemeanor can walk into the Magistrate's office and swear out a complaint, no matter how trivial, and have the police all over it. As the victim of a series of white-collar felonies, I don't have the same right.

I could talk all day long about how "journalism" (specifically the lack thereof) plays into this story. In Asheboro, the publisher of the Courier Tribune is married to the Director of the Randolph County Economic Development Corporation and they're both in bed with the Chamber of Commerce (where one of the hospital administrators I've accused has served as an officer). Where David Renfro's Courier Tribune is concerned, when I sued RMA (a gut-wrenching decision for me), not a word was published. When Randolph Hospital sued me for "libel" (the most humiliating and demoralizing thing I've ever experienced), it was front-page news. When the cases were settled (in my favor), it was a second-page short-take (so as not to embarrass the really important people who got handed their hats and had to tuck their tails). I protested TWICE in front of Randolph Hospital in the spring of 2004, and appeared before the Asheboro City Council to plead for help. The Courier Tribune did not print a word about it. Anything that challenges the mill-town status quo . . . from unions to (progressive) Democrats to an "insolent" homegrown doctor (who has the local hospital CEO red-handed on perjury), is effectively muzzled by this crowd. As for "the daily alternative", I've already posted my thoughts on the News & Record's peculiar brand of journalism. Enough was said there.

And enough has been said here. We shall see how this experiment goes. I've more than earned the right to this meeting. And I deserve some help from the government I more-than-honorably served. Will I get it? And will blogging make a difference? Will one voice matter?

This little exercise in the pursuit of justice has taken a lot out of me. I'm taking some time off from posting for a few days, maybe a week.

But stay tuned.

5/12/06 Addendum: These letters are going out with a whole stack of supporting documentation (requiring a trip to Staples - as I am doing this on my own time). Real life . . . including a trip last night to an NC Medical Society "town hall" meeting (that I am going blog on next week) . . . has interferred with me getting these letters out as I had planned. I hope to get them out on Saturday.

5/20/06 Addendum. The letters posted above and all supporting documentation finally went out (by certified mail) on Friday, May 19. The delay was unfortunate, but unavoidable. I have enjoyed the "break" from regular blogging and will likely resume semi-regular posting within the week. Finally, a note on comment moderation. I have made it clear before that I reserve the right to review and moderate comments posted on this (my) blog. The newspapers do it all the time. It's called editing (and in that realm, I've certainly seen myself - and many of the issues I address here - edited out). I am supposed to be be notified when new comments are posted. There seem to be some technical glitches with that, and it's something I cannot do anything about except notify blogspot.com. Of course, all comments I receive will be considered and digested. If a comment is supportive, or asks a legitimate question (not already answered), or offers constructive criticism/another reasonable viewpoint, it will be posted and I will respond. But anons and "snarks" need not apply - and there will be no name-calling. My opinions are my own (I am signing my name), and borne of hard-won experience. I'm happy to defend those opinions, but as "the host" here, I will enforce civility. Deal with it. If you're interested in what I am doing, you will follow this project along, and if you're not, you're free to move on.