By the time the U.S. attorney’s office announced the indictments on Jan. 5, the gist of the allegations was well known: Roger Williams Medical Center had given state Sen. John A. Celona a dummy job to pay him to use his political influence on the hospital’s behalf.
Similar allegations were on the table involving the CVS Corp. and Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island. But while the North Providence Democrat admitted to influence-peddling on their behalf, and was punished for it at the state and federal levels, no one at those companies has been charged with any crime.
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Roger Williams, however, was hit hard. Not only were its president, Robert A. Urciuoli, and two other executives indicted on corruption charges, so was the hospital itself, triggering a crisis that raised questions about the 127-year-old institution’s prospects for survival.
Three weeks later, after firing Urciuoli, the hospitals’ trustees made a deferred prosecution deal with the U.S. attorney’s office, agreeing to provide $4 million worth of free health care to the public, tighten ethical standards and cooperate with ongoing criminal proceedings.
In October, Urciuoli and another executive were convicted by a federal jury, while the third executive was acquitted. A sentencing is scheduled for March 9.
— Marion Davis
