Home > Political Insider > Archives > 2008 > February > 21 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USAn attempt to remove the head of Cousins Properties from the Grady board
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A wave of legislation aimed at Grady Memorial Hospital passed the Senate on Thursday, including S.B. 353 sponsored by Sen. David Shafer of Duluth.
S.B. 353 is a conflict-of-interest bill that many thought was aimed at state Rep. Pam Stephenson (D-Decatur), who is currently acting as Grady’s CEO and is also chairman of the board that oversees the hospital.
But wait.
State Sen. Vincent Fort (D-Atlanta), a strong critic of the Grady transformation to private management, added a little ol’ amendment that breezed right through the chamber. His co-sponsor was Senate Majority Leader Tommie Williams (R-Lyons), which helps explain the greased track.
“All this does is strengthen what [Shafer] is attempting to do,” Fort told his colleagues. In the Legislature, this is a loaded phrase that means the exact opposite. Kind of like a bull pawing the ground, or a rattler shaking its tail.
The amendment, now part of the bill, says:
“No individual shall be eligible to serve in a governing capacity of a public hospital if that individual is an employee or director of or has a financial interest in a competitor of the public hospital.”
That description fits Tom Bell, chairman of the board and CEO of Cousins Properties. According to the company’s web site, Cousins — with its partner Emory University — owns 50 percent of the Emory Crawford Long Medical Office Tower.
We asked Fort who his amendment targeted. He wouldn’t supply a specific name. But he said this: “How can anyone sit on a board when they have an interest in a competitor down the street?”
Comments
By Pompano
February 21, 2008 2:27 PM | Link to this
I’m still groggy from falling out of my chair. I can’t believe Mr Fort has finally come up with a good idea - will wonders never cease
By catlady
February 21, 2008 3:07 PM | Link to this
Rest assured Mr. Fort would not have inserted this if the target was black.