A lawsuit filed Oct. 3 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia accuses former U.Va. Health CEO Craig Kent and several other Medical System executives and doctors who he hired of leading illegal efforts to increase revenue at U.Va. Health — which plaintiffs say resulted in the deaths of two patients.
The 105-page lawsuit was filed by the spouses of the two patients who died as well as Surgeon Dr. Jeffrey Young, Dr. Kenan Yount, a former U.Va. Health cardiothoracic surgeon, Cardiac Surgeon Dr. Mark Roeser and Cardiothoracic Surgeon Dr. John Kern. Defendants in the case also include Rector Rachel Sheridan, the Board of Visitors, University Physicians Group and the Commonwealth of Virginia.
The physicians accuse Kent of creating a racketeering scheme with the help of Melina Kibbe, former dean of the School of Medicine, Wendy Horton, former CEO of the University Medical Center, Ourania Preventza, former chief of the division of cardiothoracic surgery, Surgical Oncologist Dr. Allan Tsung and Cardiothoracic Surgeon Dr. Kim de la Cruz. The scheme, coined the “Kent Enterprise” in the suit, alleges that Kent and other named doctors prioritized revenue and ranking over patient safety.
“The ‘Kent Enterprise’ orchestrated a scheme that functioned with fraudulent and unlawful predicate acts, including fraudulent billing practices and falsification of medical records, at its operative core,” the lawsuit reads.
The Cavalier Daily was unable to reach Horton, de la Cruz, Preventza or Tsung for comment. In a statement to The Cavalier Daily, both Kent and Kibbe called the allegations “baseless,” and they both said they look forward to the judicial process playing out.
"During my five-year tenure as CEO of UVA Health, my team and I remained focused on delivering exceptional and high-quality healthcare to Virginians and beyond. These allegations against me are absurd and baseless and many have already been publicly disproven,” Kent said. “I look forward to the opportunity to finally be able to address these accusations and to be fully vindicated through the judicial process.”
“While it is unfortunate that these unfounded and baseless allegations continue to be brought forth, I refer you to the University of Virginia for comment. However, I am eager for the truth to prevail through the judicial system as there is no legal basis for this lawsuit.” Kibbe’s chief of staff said in a statement to The Cavalier Daily.
In a statement to The Cavalier Daily, Eric Swensen, public information officer for U.Va. Health, said the University generally does not comment on pending litigation.
The Kent Enterprise
The Kent Enterprise, according to the lawsuit, was intended to drive up profits and did so by retaliating against employees who spoke out. The consequences, according to the lawsuit, was a decline in patient safety, including two deaths.
The lawsuit accuses Kent of over-admitting patients into the hospital during the pandemic, and then falsely reporting the open bed count so that the hospital would be available for elective surgeries. It alleges that when Kent arrived at U.Va. Health, he had a profit-driven mission and surrounded himself with loyalists in Kibbe and Horton.
“Within weeks of his arrival, Kent declared his mission to maximize revenue and national rankings, even if it meant dismantling patient-safety safeguards and removing experienced clinicians who opposed his strategy,” the lawsuit reads.
The plaintiffs allege one primary way the Kent Enterprise maximized profit was through over-staffing surgeries with more people than necessary in order to charge patients, as well as Medicare, more.
Physician plaintiffs say they were retaliated against for reporting conduct
The lawsuit alleges that the physician plaintiffs were obstructed, extorted and retaliated against for speaking out. The plaintiffs say Young was removed from his leadership roles within his division and was forced out of U.Va. Health, though according to the U.Va. Health website, Young is still employed as a surgeon.
The suit also says that Roeser was denied a promotion, subjected to hazardous conditions in the operating room and “driven out of Charlottesville.” When Roeser reported his concerns, he said he was also required to attend therapy sessions at his expense.
Allegations continue for Kent, Kibbe and others
Kent and Melina Kibbe, former Dean of the School of Medicine, were accused in September 2024 of fostering a culture of fear and retaliation as well an environment that threatens patient safety by 128 U.Va. Physicians Group faculty. The faculty submitted a letter to the Board declaring no confidence in Kent and Kibbe, providing their allegations. The letter described broader allegations but did not provide specific examples.
The faculty alleged that "egregious acts” occurred and were reported, but were ignored by Kent and Kibbe. They also accused the two of subjecting residents to harassment, poor and opaque financial decisions as well as hiring doctors with questionable quality of work.
Following the letter’s submission, the University hired an outside firm to conduct an investigation into the allegations. When that firm presented their findings to the Board in February, Kent submitted his resignation. The Cavalier Daily submitted a Freedom of Information Act request for the findings of the investigation but was denied under an exemption for attorney-client privilege and protection of personnel matters.
Kent, Kibbe, Horton and Preventza have since left their positions at U.Va. Health. Kibbe and Horton accepted new positions in July with no formal announcement from U.Va. Health at the time, though Kibbe’s was later announced formally in August.
Even prior to the no-confidence letter and investigation, Kent had faced a no-confidence declaration in 2017 when he was dean of The Ohio State University College of Medicine.
Kent and Horton were colleagues prior to arriving at U.Va. Health, first at the University of Wisconsin from 2008-2016 and then at Ohio State from 2017-2020. The plaintiffs say that Horton’s hire came from her connections to Kent, and that it was done without a competitive search process or meaningful faculty input. Tsung also spent time under both Kent and Horton at Ohio State, and had previously overlapped with Kibbe at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
The plaintiffs are seeking relief under several statutes, including the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, the False Claims Act, the Virginia Fraud Against Taxpayers Act, the Virginia Fraud and Abuse Whistleblower Protection Act, defamation and more. The plaintiffs have requested a jury trial, and are represented by law firms MichieHamlett and Jones Swanson Huddell.
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