Dead Certain

altruists.”
    “It looks like we’re both wrong.” He chuckled dryly. “Medicine has changed. There isn’t a lot of altruism left these days.”
    “Is that why you think the HCC deal is a good thing?“
    “Good for whom? A hospital is a complex organization operating in a rapidly changing environment. Are we talking about what is best for the hospital? The patient? The doctor? As a physician, naturally I am committed to treating my patient to the very best of my ability. But what is my responsibility as chief of staff of the hospital? I cast my vote in favor of the sale because Gavin McDermott and Kyle Massius did a better job of convincing me that by selling to HCC we would keep Prescott Memorial in the business of serving the underprivileged. Your mother and her brother didn’t have any concrete ideas except that we should keep on doing things as we’ve always done.”
    “What would make you change your mind?”
    “Let’s see—” Laffer chuckled, mischievously. “—how about a Learjet and season tickets for the Met?”
    “I was thinking more in terms of a well-reasoned appeal to your better judgment, but maybe I could throw in a boxed set of Maria Callas CDs.”
    “I see you know all about my weakness for sopranos. What else has your roommate been telling you, I wonder? „
    “She tells me that you’re an able administrator and a good teacher,” I replied truthfully. “She also told me that if you have a weakness, it’s that you tend to think the best of everyone.”
    “Until proved otherwise.”
    “Then what if I told you that I could prove that HCC has no interest in continuing to serve Prescott Memorial’s current patient population? That as soon as they take over, they plan on dismantling the residency and fellowship programs—”
    “HCC has given us every assurance—” protested Dr. Laffer.
    “In writing?” I demanded. “Anything that they can later be held to?” Laffer did not reply, and I knew from his silence that they had not. “Because even though I can’t speak for the world of medicine, I can tell you for a fact that in the world of business, assurances are cheap, and as you very well know, providing high-quality medical care is expensive. HCC may be paying lip service to the idea of continuing the mission of Prescott Memorial, but do you know what kind of people we’re really dealing with? In every market that HCC has moved into, they’ve attempted to control the number of patient beds by closing hospitals. If they succeed in making a move into Chicago, which hospital do you think they’ll end up closing first?”
    “It’s as easy for you to say that as it is for Packman to make promises he doesn’t intend to keep,” pointed out Laffer.
    “What if I can prove it?”
    “Prove what? How can you prove what someone will or will not do in the future?”
    “What if I can prove that Packman isn’t playing by the rules? What if I can prove that he’s cut a secret deal with someone on your staff—information now in exchange for a piece of the action later?”
    “You have proof?”
    “I can get it. All I want to know is yes or no. If I can prove that HCC has been dealing under the table, would you reconsider selling the hospital to them?”
    Carl Laffer leveled his gray eyes at me. The expression on his face remained impassive. “You bring me hard evidence that HCC isn’t playing by the rules or that they don’t intend to keep their promises regarding continuing the work of the hospital,” he said quietly, “and you have my word that I’ll change my vote.”
     
    I stood on the sidewalk after my meeting with Carl Laffer, filled with hope and fear. Hope that I might be able to make enough of a case for HCC’s perfidy that I would be able to convince Laffer to change his vote, and fear that I wouldn’t be able to get the proof in time.
    I also knew that there was very little that HCC wouldn’t stoop to. From the suit they’d filed against my mother, I knew that HCC liked to play rough, and from what Elliott had told me, they didn’t have any qualms about playing dirty. If they found out about what I was trying to do, what might they be willing to do to stop me? I was so preoccupied by the question that I didn’t see Julia Gordon until I practically ran right into her.
    “Hello there, neighbor,” she declared cheerfully as I stopped dead in my tracks.
    Julia, her husband, and two daughters lived just down the street from me in a pretty brownstone