(Host) Vermont Attorney General William Sorrell says the investigation into criminal wrongdoing in the Fletcher Allen Renaissance Project is a complex case that will take time to finish.
Sorrell says federal and state investigators are plowing through tens of thousands of pages of documents in an effort to find out who was responsible for misleading regulators about the true cost and scope of the project.
Speaking Thursday night on VPR’s Switchboard program, Sorrell said authorities aren’t necessarily limiting their investigation to former employees or to those who were directly responsible for making decisions:
(Sorrell) “I don’t mean to spook anyone, but there’s such a thing as a aiding in the commission of a crime. And one who aids in the commission of a crime under our law, can be as guilty as the person standing there with the gun at the counter in the mom and pop store. That’s why I’m reluctant to say, ‘No way, no how’ in terms of a current Fletcher Allen employee. But clearly a major focus of the investigation is on former employees.”
(Host) Last month Fletcher Allen Health Care admitted that individuals acting on its behalf had falsified information about the hospital’s expansion project. In a settlement with the federal and state authorities, the hospital agreed to pay a one million dollar penalty. The settlement ended the possibility of criminal charges against the hospital, but charges could still be brought against individuals.