Giving Away the Hosital: A Public Record that Reveals a Glimpse Into "Our" Secret Government

[Brian Essi]

From: Bullock, Tom
To: Gilman, Scott
Cc: McEwen, Colin
Subject: Re: subjects to address emanating from last night"s council meeting
Date: Tuesday, December 08, 2015 12:11:32 PM
Excellent point chief. Colin can we include Chief Gilman's argument in the response? And I suggest he's our lead spokesman on ER questions

On Dec 8, 2015, at 11:38 AM, Gilman, Scott <Scott.Gilman@lakewoodoh.net> wrote:
One thing that has not been explained is how will the underserved be less underserved if we still have an ER? They will still go to the ER like they always have. If this works as it could there should be less need for ER visits.

From: Bullock, Tom
Sent: Tuesday, December 08, 2015 11:33 AM
To: Hagan, Mary
Cc: Summers, Mike; Anderson, David; Marx, Cynthia; Juris, Shawn; Madigan, Mary; Bach, Maureen;
Smith, Monique; Nowlin, Ryan; O'Leary, Sam; Baker, Luann; Beno, Joe; Butler, Kevin; Coletta, Michael;
Gelsomino, Antoinette; Gilman, Scott; Malley, Tim; Pae, Jennifer; Siley, Dru; Strachan, Shannon; Yousefi,
Jean; McEwen, Colin; Eileen Korey (ek@eileenkorey.com)

Subject: Re: subjects to address emanating from last night's council meeting

Mary adds the Metro hospital issue (could that option be resurrected?).
I remember one more point raised: allegedly the vote on Issue 64 was skewed due to high turnout
by affluent voters and low turnout by lower income residents, those underserved most likely to be
harmed by closure.

Response: the recent election showed no groundswell of support for the referendum approach. A
majority of Lakewood voters are comfortable with the deliberative approach being followed by the
city's elected leaders. In addition, views on the hospital don't divide by geography or income.

On Dec 8, 2015, at 9:12 AM, Hagan, Mary <Mary.Hagan@lakewoodoh.net> wrote:
The turn down if Metro too was still launched.
Sent from my iPhone

On Dec 8, 2015, at 8:51 AM, Summers, Mike <Mike.Summers@lakewoodoh.net> wrote:

Members of City council and directors,

My notes yielded the following topics that we should address at the December 14th
special city council meeting:

plan will be an economic disaster for lakewood- will cause loss of service?

this is corporate control of government?

will underserve the poor?

no consideration for environmental impact?

doubtful commitment from CCF to lakewood?

Huron report- says we can support a hospital.

How does avon, pop 20,000, deserve a hospital when we do not?

Why did you not consider the Surgical Development Partners?

No doubt you picked up a few other themes.

I will take on the economic impact theme. Shannon Strachan is pulling past notes on
the serving the poor theme. We have much material to work with on this.

The Huron Report is straight forward. Tom Bullock’s inquiry in September for
clarification is a good material.

I will research the population market of Lorain, Erie, Huron and Sandusky Counties- the
catchment market for the Avon hospital.

Anyone interested in the others on this list or not on this list?

I suggest we take the first portion of your meeting and address these isisues and any
others that you feel are needed before opening up the floor.
I was expecting what we heard last night. The tone is taking up a higher emotional
appeal, a “david vs Goliath(CCF)”

Mike Summers
Michael P Summers
Mayor, City of Lakewood, Ohio
216-529-6600
Mike.summers@lakewoodoh.net

The Poor Theme Email Re_ subjects to address emanating from last nig...(1).pdf

(45.81 KiB) Downloaded 151 times

[Patrick Wadden]

So you have an e-mail that aims to address the concerns of residents. I fail to see how this is a smoking gun. Seems to me that the mayor and council are writing e-mails to each other, which they know are public record, to respond to residents concerns. That also probably know that at the time of this e-mail you and others have made thousands of records requests. Seems like they should just cc you on every single e-mail.

I guess what you are trying to do is create a "a-ha gotcha" post. But you just posted an e-mail exchange between city officials that discusses and delegates who is best able to respond to residents concerns. Seems reasonable.

[Patrick Wadden]

So is every single e-mail written and sent between city officials a "secret" e-mail if they don't copy you on the e-mail?

[Dan Alaimo]

On Dec 8, 2015, at 8:51 AM, Summers, Mike <Mike.Summers@lakewoodoh.net> wrote:

Members of City council and directors,

My notes yielded the following topics that we should address at the December 14th
special city council meeting:

plan will be an economic disaster for lakewood- will cause loss of service?

this is corporate control of government?

will underserve the poor?

no consideration for environmental impact?

doubtful commitment from CCF to lakewood?

Huron report- says we can support a hospital.

How does avon, pop 20,000, deserve a hospital when we do not?

Why did you not consider the Surgical Development Partners?

No doubt you picked up a few other themes.

I will take on the economic impact theme. Shannon Strachan is pulling past notes on
the serving the poor theme. We have much material to work with on this.

The Huron Report is straight forward. Tom Bullock’s inquiry in September for
clarification is a good material.

I will research the population market of Lorain, Erie, Huron and Sandusky Counties- the
catchment market for the Avon hospital.

I don't recall how they addressed these questions publicly. Anybody?

[Brian Essi]

So you have an e-mail that aims to address the concerns of residents. I fail to see how this is a smoking gun. Seems to me that the mayor and council are writing e-mails to each other, which they know are public record, to respond to residents concerns. That also probably know that at the time of this e-mail you and others have made thousands of records requests. Seems like they should just cc you on every single e-mail.

I guess what you are trying to do is create a "a-ha gotcha" post. But you just posted an e-mail exchange between city officials that discusses and delegates who is best able to respond to residents concerns. Seems reasonable.

Mr. Wadden,

They are not "addressing concerns of residents"--they were discussing combatting and knocking down those concerns to proceed with enactment the Master Agreement that was agreed to in secret prior to this email chain. Duh!

1. Thank you for acknowledging that the entire City Council, the Administration and two PR people are discussing and agreeing upon then pending legislation and agreeing on a public relations strategy. That's a violation of the Open Meetings Laws.

2. You apparently approve of Tom Bullock discussing a false narrative that was later parroted by other Council Members.

3. Do you agree with Chief Gilman: "If this works as it could there should be less need for ER visits"? Huh?

The real problem is that those in government either don't know that conducting meetings and making decisions in secret in illegal or they just don't care.

[T Peppard]

From: Bullock, Tom
To: Gilman, Scott
Cc: McEwen, Colin
Subject: Re: subjects to address emanating from last night"s council meeting
Date: Tuesday, December 08, 2015 12:11:32 PM
Excellent point chief. Colin can we include Chief Gilman's argument in the response? And I suggest he's our lead spokesman on ER questions

On Dec 8, 2015, at 11:38 AM, Gilman, Scott <Scott.Gilman@lakewoodoh.net> wrote:
One thing that has not been explained is how will the underserved be less underserved if we still have an ER? They will still go to the ER like they always have. If this works as it could there should be less need for ER visits.

Thank you very much for this information, Brian. Transparency is extremely important, especially with all the previous misdeeds and misinformation.

Chief Gilman is most definitely wrong. There are many underprivileged residents who now take a taxi to and from Fairview. I am not sure how the taxi is paid for since LHF no longer exists? However, it most certainly is a contradiction to Chief Gilman's response. In addition, those who take a trip to Lakewood ER and then to Fairview ER end up with a $700 dollar ambulance bill! Yes, our city and the underserved are most certainly less served.

It will be much worse when we no longer have a 24 hour ER - this is inevitable. I am still waiting for Chief Gilman to counter this argument with statistics. How many visitors after 9pm today as compared to October 2015?

[scott gilman]

Brian you completely miss the meaning of my comment. if the idea of a community health program works like it should then residents would not need to use the ER as their primary care. The majority of service to the underserved comes through ER visits if you develop a good primary care system that is community based then those residents would not need to use the ER as the primary care site. There was nothing secret about these emails and they were not part of any non public meeting.

[Lori Allen _]

Brian,

Thank you again for all your research and for exposing, what I believe to be, a bunch of hoodlums at City Hall. I find it amazing that Mr. Summers appears to have lock jaw, as he has to send out Gilman to be his spokesperson. I believe he is a coward.

Mr. Gilman, we are still waiting for you to post here on the Deck the names of the posters and their post's where you claim that we lied about the hospital. How about the list we asked for listing how many persons were treated at the Lakewood Urgi-Care for a serious illness/injury and then were released home. I believe we have been waiting for a couple of months now for your reply.

How about releasing the Lakewood Fire department call logs and run times? I checked with the State of Ohio and other than redacting certain personal information, they informed me that this is NOT a violation of the HIPPA law. You know, the law you like to hide behind.

E-Mails are public records and available for public viewing? How about turning over the other 85% of the public records that Mr. Butler refuses to release concerning the hospital deal? What is so secretive that is in these E-Mails? What is our city administration hiding from us?

Why is Lakewood Hospital Association refusing to turn over public records regarding the hospital deal, even when citizens have hired their own attorneys?

How about the alleged housing scams/thefts that appear to be happening to our citizens here in Lakewood, especially the elderly, terminally ill, and minorities? Wow! now that's what I call REALLY taking care of the less fortunate! How about the alleged tax scams Summers appears to be doing with his friend's properties here in Lakewood?

Mr. Gilman, instead of trying to feed us, yet, more BS, how about some REAL answers? How about releasing ALL RECORDS dealing with what appears to be a very illegal and immoral hospital give away?

How about explaining why a middle class city such as Lakewood with 51,000 residents, some being poor don't need a hospital, but Avon with 20,000 residents does?

It appears that you sir have jumped on the Summer's train. In my opinion, in this city, you don't have much, if any, credibility left!

Mr. Gilman, yes, I believe people have died as a result of their treatment at our, less than adequate, Urgi-Care. Just ask Norman!

Mr. Gilman, If I were you, I would be making a telephone call to the FBI. Then I would start singing like a Bird!

Looking forward to Mr. Summers complimentary police escort all over town today!

[Brian Essi]

Brian you completely miss the meaning of my comment. if the idea of a community health program works like it should then residents would not need to use the ER as their primary care. The majority of service to the underserved comes through ER visits if you develop a good primary care system that is community based then those residents would not need to use the ER as the primary care site. There was nothing secret about these emails and they were not part of any non public meeting.

Chief Gilman,

Hats off to you for your long service and dedication to our city and protection of citizens. I have great respect for you when you stay in your wheelhouse.


The ACA has proven to be a failure in terms of reduction of ER visits by uninsured, underinsured and the underserved. You wrote: "Good primary care system that is community based"??? Huh? Th Master Agreement dismantles and scatters health care.

The notion that our Cowboy Mayor and Boy Wonder Bullock huddled in secret for years with greedy CCF doctors and administrators and came up with a "good primary care system that is community based" to help the poor stay out of the ER and transform the City of Lakewood into the "Healthiest City in America" was and is a very sick and twisted PR fantasy. That fantasy was developed hide the theft of the hospital assets and divert them to use by the rich for their private purposes.

Bullock's comment "Excellent Point Chief" sounds to me like a line from Maxwell Smart in the sixties "Get Smart" TV show--but this is not a laughing. I agree with Summers “When Life is on the Line, Let’s Make Sure We Know the Truth.”

The truth is that the Master Agreement destroys health care and took away over $100M is health care assets and value.

Even CCF's Brian Donley referred to the FHC/ER as a "specialty referral center." It takes health care out of Lakewood.

Here is the truth about ER visits from those who planned this destruction of health care in Lakewood:

ED in Transition.jpg (83.97 KiB) Viewed 1794 times

They simply don't care about the people.

As for your comment "They were not part of any non public meeting," you are just dead wrong. The emails constitute deliberations and agreements outside of a noticed public meeting. Had the court in Skindell v. Madigan allowed discovery and a full and fair trial, this email and others as well as testimony of the participants in the secret government meetings would have exposed the entire underbelly of the secret government.

No worries. You are not the only one who has been misled and used by a Law Director Butler and the Cowboy Mayor who are running rough shot over the law and making a mockery of open government.

I suggest that you stick to your wheelhouse by continuing to protect us through your fine fire fighting and EMS service.

[Lori Allen _]

Brian,

I do not believe that Gilman got pulled into the hospital deal. He is a big boy and can make his own decisions. Since it appears that Gilman is going along with this alleged illegal hospital deal, I believe he is a member of the Summer's Extended Family. I again would like to remind Mr. Gilman that I don't believe it is too late to go to the FBI!