Radiology provider Envision Healthcare said Friday that it’s suspending all contributions to lawmakers who opposed certifying results from November’s presidential election.
CEO Jim Rechtin said the pause will last through the entirety of 2021, emphasizing that the Nashville, Tennessee-based physician firm’s political activities must reflect “our values as a national medical group.” Envision joins others in healthcare such as Blue Cross Blue Shield and 3M that have similarly stopped political donations after the Jan. 6 attack on Capitol Hill.
“A well-functioning democracy is the foundation of a well-functioning society and economy. By extension, it is the foundation of a well-functioning healthcare delivery system,” Rechtin said Jan. 15. “It is central to who we are and what we do on multiple levels. The events we saw last week at the United States Capitol, and the ensuing attempts by some elected officials to undermine our democracy, are unacceptable. Those who try to undermine democracy must be held accountable.”
Private equity-backed Envision was a fierce lobbyist last year in opposing attempts to curtail surprise medical billing legislation. The firm upped its spending on such activities by 400%, year over year, in the second quarter of 2020, doling out some $400,000 to help launch an ad blitz against legislation, according to a published report. Congress had launched an investigation into Envision’s surprise billing practices, amid concerns of rising healthcare costs.
All told, the firm employs more than 900 radiologists as part of a team of 25,000 physicians operating in anesthesiology, emergency care, neonatology and primary care. UnitedHealthcare recently knocked Envision out of its national network, citing the provider’s “egregiously high rates.”
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.