Doctor withdraws from UMC board consideration
Dr. Anthony Marlon withdrew Wednesday from consideration for the new University Medical Center governing board.
His announcement followed the Review-Journal’s disclosure of his 1991 misdemeanor conviction in federal court in Las Vegas for providing false information about a government contract his company handled. Marlon was one of nine candidates nominated for the new board of Clark County’s public hospital. Before Wednesday’s development, he was part of a recommendation facing a vote on Tuesday.
“I have devoted many years of my life to UMC, going back to 1972, when I was chief of cardiology there,” Marlon said in a statement released by the county. “Ever since, I have been a staunch supporter of the institution and its unique role in our community. I believe my expertise could greatly benefit UMC at a pivotal time in its history.
“However, because questions have been raised about something that happened 22 years ago, I believe those questions would distract from the important work of the new governing board. Therefore, because of my affinity for UMC, I believe it would be in that great institution’s best interest to withdraw my name from consideration.”
Marlon’s former company, Sierra Health Services, had a contract to provide health care coverage to federal employees in Nevada when a routine federal audit found $515,000 in questionable HMO charges. Marlon was the chief executive officer and chairman of the company, leaving it in 2008.
Following an investigation by the U.S. attorney’s office, Marlon pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of providing false information to the Office of Personnel Management about the rates that were set in the federal contract. His company had to pay back about $434,000 in overcharges. And Marlon’s company sanctioned him and he lost six months of salary, about $175,000.
Marlon’s withdrawal doesn’t necessarily halt the process of approving a slate of candidates for the new board.
The county’s ordinance allows it to put in place a board of five to nine candidates, commission Chairman Steve Sisolak said.
Asked if the vote will go forward on Tuesday, Sisolak said: “I haven’t heard to the contrary.”
Sisolak said he’ll meet Monday with some of the candidates to get acquainted with them before making a decision.
Despite Marlon’s withdrawal, unanswered questions remain about the county’s process for selecting candidates.
For example, Marlon was on the five-person nominating committee charged with the task of going through applications for seats to the new board and selecting candidates with consultant Larry Gage.
Neither one has answered questions about how Marlon’s name came to be nominated with input from the same committee he sat on. It’s also unclear how rigorous the county’s vetting process was for candidates.
In July, county commissioners directed Gage to form an ad hoc nominating committee. That committee met six times between September and November.
Gage was unavailable Tuesday and Wednesday to answer questions. Marlon didn’t respond to an emailed request for comment. Instead, Marlon gave his statement to the county.
That statement didn’t answer the newspaper’s emailed questions about how the committee came to recommend Marlon and his involvement in that process.
Marlon was the only member of the nominating committee to be recommended for a UMC board seat. He previously chaired UMC’s advisory board, which the county scrapped in 2012.
Contact reporter Ben Botkin at bbotkin@reviewjournal.com or 702-405-9781. Follow him on Twitter @BenBotkin1.
