Southern Illinoisan from Carbondale, Illinois • Page 5

The Southern Ilunoisan Thursday, October 1 1, 2007 www.thesouthern.com Attorney calls surgeon's hiring at Marion VA hospital 'egregious from October 2006 to March 2007. Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois said Veizaga-Mendez had some role in nine deaths when the typical mortality rate would have been two. Veizaga-Mendez, while simultaneously licensed in Illinois, surrendered his Massachusetts medical license last year after accusations of "grossly" substandard care. Insistent that Bob Shank died after undergoing what should have been one of the "most mundane procedures you can think of," Harmon said "the most egregious thing was that (Veizaga-Mendez) was on staff" in Marion.

"Someone was tasked with the responsibility at the Marion VA of assuring that only qualified surgeons are on staff there, and this just boggles my mind," Harmon told The Associated Press this week. "There's got to be something that horribly went wrong with the credentialing process there; there might not have been one. "I can't imagine how even the most rudimentary check of the last hospitals he was on staff at (in Massachusetts) would not have revealed gigantic problems with this guy," Harmon said. Repeated efforts by The Associated Press to find a listed telephone number or address for Veizaga-Mendez have failed. Shank's widow, Katrina, has filed a claim against the "All of those pieces of information would have been included in the discussion about whether to hire," said McBrady, noting that he wasn't involved in Veizaga-Mendez's hiring or spoken with the panel that was.

While cautkms about discussing Veizaga-Mendez directly, citing the pending investigation, McBrady said the doctor had a valid, unrestricted medical license in Massachusetts and Illinois when hired by the Marion VA in January 2006. Background checks did not reveal any prior or pending disciplinary action against Veizaga-Mendez, and documents concerning his relinquishing his Massachusetts license in June 2006 indicated the action was "for non-disciplinary reasons," McBrady said. Harmon said he doesn't fault Massachusetts medical regulators, crediting them with getting Veizaga-Mendez to surrender his license there. "The problem is it doesn't do anything to protect the citizens of Illinois," he "Obviously if the VA had been doing their job, they wouldn't have hired this guy." But by surrendering his Massachusetts license, Veizaga-Mendez legitimately could tell prospective employers elsewhere the his license never was suspended or revoked, Harmon said. "That's kind of a flaw in the system," he said.

U.S. government as a precursor to a possible federal lawsuit, and plans an aggressive legal push to flush out why Veizaga-Mendez got hired in Marion despite his documented troubles, Harmon said. Pete McBrady, the acting director of the VA hospital, said Wednesday a group of physicians at the Marion site typically pores over a "wide range of information" in vetting each job candidate. The scrutiny includes finding whether the applicant is licensed in other states and if he or she has a record in the National Practitioner Data Bank of tort or malpractice claims against physicians. They also go over personal clinical references.

rule requiring pharmacies to fill prescriptions for emergency contraception. It requires a change in state pharmacy rules, so it must be reviewed by the legislative panel that sets those rules before it can take effect. If taken within 72 hours of intercourse, the morning-after pill a higher dose of regular hormonal contraception significantly reduces a woman's chance of becoming pregnant. It works by preventing ovulation or fertilization and interfering with implantation of a Illinois, pharmacists reach deal on 'Plan B' contraceptive to offer a drug they oppose on moral grounds, but minors who need it (adults can obtain emergency contraceptives without a prescription) would not be turned away and have to find a different pharmacy. "It seems to be a thoughtful settlement," Pam Sutherland, president of Illinois Planned Parenthood, said Wednesday.

"This gives them an out and it still makes sure the woman gets her prescription." The settlement would end a lawsuit against the state by several pharmacists and Walgreen Co. over a state BY CHRISTOPHER WILLS THE ASSOCIATED PRESS SPRINGFIELD Illinois pharmacists who object to dispensing emergency birth control would be allowed to step aside while someone else filled the prescription, under a deal that could settle a lawsuit against the state. That person not required to be a pharmacist would contact a pharmacist at a different location, then follow directions for dispensing the so-called "morning after" pill. The compromise means pharmacists would not have fertilized egg, which some people consider the equivalent of abortion. Gov.

Rod Blagojevich introduced the rule more than two years ago, saying that pharmacists had an obligation to fill all prescriptions despite any personal qualms. Someone in need of emergency contraception should always be able to get it, "No delays. No hassles. No lectures," he said then. His rule put the responsibility on the pharmacies.

If one of their employees did not want to fill BY JIM SUHR THE ASSOCIATED PRESS An attorney for a Kentucky woman whose husband died after gallbladder surgery at a VA hospital in Marion says the VA's hiring of the surgeon with a questionable record is "the most egregious" concern in the case. Bob Shank, 50, bled to death a day after his Aug. 9 laparoscopic surgery by Dr. Jose Veizaga-Mendez at the Veterans Affairs medical center in Marion, according to his widow's lawyer, Jim Harmon. The doctor resigned three days later, shortly before the hospital suspended inpatient surgeries due to a reported spike in post-surgical deaths House backs Blagojevich on maintaining truck speed limit BY RYAN KEITH THE ASSOCIATED PRESS SPRINGFIELD The Illinois House handed Gov.

Rod Blagojevich a rare victory Wednesday, failing to override his veto of a measure that would let truckers drive faster on rural highways and interstates. The House voted 57-53 in favor of overturning the governor's veto, but fell far short of the 71 votes needed to pass the measure despite Blagojevich's objections. The measure would have raised the speed limit for trucks from 55 to 65 miles per hour. The vote marks the fourth time in recent years the higher truck speed limit has moved forward in the Legislature but fallen short of becoming law. Supporters' of the speed limit increase said the governor's strong lobbying push helped block the change despite an often sour relationship this year with the Legislature particularly the House.

"They cranked up the opposition," said Rep. Bob Flider, the Mt. Zion Democrat who sponsored the measure. "They cranked up the grassroots effort against it. They were effective in peeling votes off." Flider said Blagojevich and his state agency officials had worked lawmakers hard for their support and suggested some had been offered enticements for upholding the veto.

Flider also said he expected the issue was dead for this year but could reappear next year. Earlier Wednesday, Blagojevich stood under an interstate overpass in Chicago to urge lawmakers to uphold his veto. He said lawmakers Who supported the change be "voting to kill people." He later thanked the House for backing his stance, saying they "voted to save lives." Blagojevich spokeswoman Rebecca Rausch said the governor had made personal phone calls to legislators on the issue but said he did not offer construction projects or other incentives in return. "He feels very strongly about this and was very pleased with the results," Rausch said. The debate again highlighted the regional differences in the Legislature that sometimes outweigh political allegiances and ongoing disputes.

Supporters of the higher speed limit in downstate and rural parts of the state say a "uniform" speed limit promotes safety by ensuring cars and trucks travel at the same speed. i It also promotes economic health, as truckers are disadvantaged here because they must drive slower than in surrounding states, they argue. Despite recent failures, they thought this year could be different. The House backed the plan with 90 votes in May, and the Senate overrode the veto last week with several spare votes despite Blagojevich's concerns. Ultimately, though, the governor and his mostly urban allies won out.

DlMtttS CBl Kenneth Cole Reaction: 1 ZP My Boo Orig. 79.00. S-jmn BcBcirs JJ Derrv of a prescription, the store had to make another pharmacist available onsite. Some companies, such ast Walgreens, reacted by indefinitely suspending any pharmacist who objected to, providing the Plan contraceptive. Several pharmacists then sued the state to block Blagojevich's rule, and Walgreens joined their lawsuit.

The settlement, first reported by The (Springfield) State Journal-Register, was filed last week. It does not include any exchange of money, attorneys said. vX October Values Mens1 Johnston Murphy Halsey, Gambrill Durst Ladies1 Clarks Naturalizer Thea, Magic Dayle Your Choice A. Ladies1 Clark Shoes Rosebrook Nannie i Hl-" For Your Convenience We Accept Your Dillard's Charge, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, Carte Blanche, Or SHOP MONDAYTHROUGH SATURDAY 10 A.M. 9 P.M.

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