Ky. Charity Alleges Misuse of Donations by Hospital Operator

A Louisville, Ky., children’s health charity is suing the operator of a hospital to which it donates more than $6-million a year, claiming the nonprofit health system uses some of the money to enrich itself and its executives, reports The Courier-Journal of Louisville.

The suit filed Thursday by Kosair Charities says Norton Healthcare has refused to provide an accounting of how it spends contributions to Kosair Children’s Hospital, which grew out of a 1982 agreement between the charity and the medical network. Among other allegations, the charity alleges Norton applies the donated funds to billing full-price “rack rates” for care of indigent patients, rather than the actual treatment cost.

Thomas Johnson, a Norton spokesman, denied the accusations in the suit. He said Kosair Charities is more than $6-million behind in promised donations and “has engaged in a systematic pattern of raising baseless allegations in an effort to avoid its contractual obligations” to the hospital.