TPM Muckraker wasn’t interested in my hot news tip, so you get the goods.
Keeping it all in the family:
Jeb and George W. Bush have been good for the brothers Agwunobi.
Last week I met Dr. Greg Dworkin – in the flesh – at the HHS Pandemic Leadership Forum. It was nice to put a face to the man whose postings I have read on this blog. His comments at the forum highlighted his unique insight into the importance of the flu blogging community. As founder of FluWiki, Greg is clearly a respected “elder” in the pandemic influenza blogging community. He has helped me understand the power and unique importance of the flu blogging community and its collective voice.
I have learned a lot from the comments I have read on the blog and my conversation with Greg last week. In my first posting, it was not my intention to dissuade advanced preparation or to down play the gravity of pandemics. Advanced preparedness is critical and individual preparedness and a culture of self sufficiency are essential. No one can afford to wait until after an emergency begins in order to prepare.
No one can predict with certainty what the next pandemic will look like. There are no guarantees or promises that can be made regarding its impact on society. The next pandemic may be mild, as in 1957 and 1968, severe, as in 1918, or somewhere in between. The next pandemic could even be worse than 1918. There is simply no way of knowing.
It’s important to know that the Federal government alone cannot respond to and address the unique challenges brought on by a pandemic. We are urging a sense of shared responsibility, as it is the only way we can help each other, those less fortunate, and ourselves. Shared responsibility includes all levels of government, private sector, civic organizations, businesses, faith-based communities, education sector, communities, families, and individuals.
He recently resigned from his wingnut welfare job at the HHS and went directly to Wal-Mart as its new “Director for Health/Wellness” – selling the point of care retail health clinics and putting spin on horrible worker health insurance benefits.
John’s brother is Andrew Agwunobi, who appeared in the WSJ report 10/25 about the WellCare raids. The brothers have almost identical histories: med school, MBAs, then political appointments as wunderkinds – all courtesy of the Bush clan.
Current and former WellCare officials have been unloading shares as the company’s share price climbed higher and higher, the WSJ reports. The company, which provides managed care plans for Medicare and Medicaid patients, was raided by federal agents yesterday, and its stock tumbled today.
Andrew Agwunobi, who now heads Florida’s Medicaid agency, served on WellCare’s board from June until December 2006 and sold $1 million worth of shares in December of 2006, according to an SEC filing. Agwunobi wasn’t immediately available for comment, the WSJ said.
The Atlanta Daily World story includes a picture of Andrew Agwunobi and more of his bio.
Agwunobi joined Grady on June 1, 2003. Dr. Andy, as he has become affectionately known, has been on the forefront of change for the health system during a very difficult period faced with financial challenges.
“We have been fortunate to have had the leadership, energy and skills of this remarkably talented individual at the helm of Grady during this sensitive period in the history of the health system,” Brown said. “He will leave a legacy to be remembered and admired.”
During his short tenure, Agwunobi negotiated the potential merger of Hughes Spalding Children’s Hospital with Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, launched a public information and transparency campaign to raise awareness and brand the health system, oversaw a portfolio analysis with KPMG to identify financial strengths and weaknesses in all service areas in Grady, created a plan to grow revenues within the profitable service areas to help fund the mission of Grady Health System, created a plan to eliminate services to the uninsured who live outside DeKalb and Fulton counties (ed. note – my emphasis), served as a catalyst for philanthropic support, improved pharmacy operations and won much recognition and praise.
Grady’s new interim chief also has a list of accomplishments and awards that are numerous. They include being the past chairman of the board of the Georgia Hospital Association, past regent of the American College of Healthcare Executives, service on the regional policy board of the American Hospital Association, the board of the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and the board of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce.
How’s that for stories of heartwarming and pocket-picking brotherly love?
2 comments
Sorry to post here first, but I asked DemfromCT pretty closely about the substance of the avian flu initiative at DK. Greg tried to fob me off with rhetorical tricks that would not fool a baby, failed to separate homself from the initiative, got offended, and made online diagnoses of opponents to his point of view. When I uncovered the tie between avian flu, Homeland Security and SPP/NAU, he denied it and accused me of conspiracy theory.
Watching this unravel will be fun.