BishopAccountability.org
	Mass. AG: Church Gives up Control of Hospitals Conde Nast Portfolio May 20, 2008 http://www.portfolio.com/news-markets/national-news/ap/2008/05/20/mass-ag-church-gives-up-control-of-hospitals The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston agreed to give up control of its financially struggling chain of six eastern Massachusetts hospitals, but will still retain authority over moral and ethical issues, Attorney General Martha Coakley said Tuesday. An independent board of governors will manage financial, strategic and operational affairs under changes proposed by church officials, Coakley said. The archdiocese will retain the right to reject any action proposed by the board and which may require its approval - provided that church officials file an advance written notice to the office of the state's chief law enforcement official, Coakley said. Under terms of an agreement with the Attorney General's Office, the archdiocese essentially retains veto power over major strategic moves, including major transactions, Catholic identity, bylaw and charter changes as well as the hiring of the president and chief executive officer. On March 6, Coakley announced that a review concluded the management model for Caritas was "inconsistent with best practices for not-for-profit health care governance." The review was prepared for her office by a health care consulting firm. Coakley said the study found Caritas' board of governors lacks independence, with power concentrated among archdiocese leaders and Cardinal Sean O'Malley granted authority to reverse board decisions - a situation the report called "inconsistent with best practices for not-for-profit community hospital governance." Virtually all religious organizations that operate hospital systems in the U.S. have transferred control to lay boards, Coakley said at the time. "We believe that the Caritas Board of Governors is now fully empowered to be a thoughtful and independent steward of this valuable system," Coakley said Tuesday. The layperson who heads Caritas Christi's governing board had previously said the Roman Catholic system already is adopting many of the changes after reviewing operations with its own consultant. The changes O'Malley approved in January mirror many of Coakley's proposals, said James Karam, chairman of Caritas' board of governors. "This agreement validates the journey our board had been traveling, in collaboration with the Attorney General's office, to implement a contemporary governance structure to guide Caritas Christi, our state's second largest health care system," Karam said Tuesday. "We will also now move forward with the recruitment of additional high level, skilled board members anxious to support the mission of Catholic health care in service to hundreds of thousands cared for each year by our regional health care system serving eastern Massachusetts," Karam said. A spokesman for the Archdiocese of Boston did not immediately return calls seeking comment.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.