CoxHealth CEO responds to government statements

In the memo, Bezanson said that he is “disappointed” by federal accusations that the hospital is not being forthcoming with documents about its internal investigation. He said that Sept. 16 had been set as a deadline for handing over the documents, and that the hospital supplied the documents Tuesday.

“We are deeply disappointed that now, after we have produced more than 285,000 pages of documents for review by the investigators … the government has asserted that we have misled the public about the steps we have taken to disclose issues regarding Ozarks Dialysis Services,” Bezanson said in the memo.

Additionally, the hospital disclosed findings of its internal investigation into its relationship with Ozarks Dialysis Services before the government was aware of the issue, the memo said; Bezanson said the hospital had been told it would “receive credit for the disclosure.”

In response to a government accusation that Bezanson had refused to make himself available for an interview, Bezanson added that he has offered to answer questions in the investigation. His personal attorney and the assistant U.S. attorney had mutually decided several times to postpone the interview.

“We are an organization of ethics, not excuses,” the memo said. “We have been working, and will continue to work, to correct any mistakes that we have made in our efforts to comply with the law.”

Click here for the full memo.