Dr. Donald Kenneth Glaser; LifePoint Health Inc.; LifePoint Hospitals Inc.; and LifePoint WV Holdings Inc. were also named as defendants in the suit.
On March 14, 2013, Paul Joseph McClung underwent a heart catheterization at Raleigh General performed by Glaser, according to a complaint filed April 20 in Raleigh Circuit Court.
McClung claims the heart catheterization was not medically indicated based upon his presentation and testing results and Glaser then proceeded to then perform stenting of the ramus intermediate and there was no indication based on the unnecessary catheterization results for stenting of the ramus intermediate.
Glaser inserted a medical unnecessary stent in the ramus intermediate, as well as an unnecessary catheterization, thus subjecting McClung to unnecessary risks, according to the suit.
McClung claims for the sole purpose of financial gain, the defendants misrepresented to McClung the need for his catheterization and stenting during his March 2013 admission.
As a result of the defendants’ acts, McClung incurred unnecessary medical expenses, injuries and damages, according to the suit.
McClung claims Raleigh General and LifePoint are liable for the tortious acts of their employees and agents.
In 2008, Raleigh General performed 107 cardiac procedures. In 2009, the hospital performed 350 cardiac procedures, an increase of more than 300 percent.
In 2010, during Glaser's first full year as the director of Raleigh General's interventional cardiology unit, the number of cardiac procedures rose to 1,745. In 2011, the hospital performed approximately 1,700 cardiac procedures and in 2012, performed 2,109 cardiac procedures.
In 2013, Glaser's tenure at Raleigh General ended and he worked in Salt Lake City, Utah, from June 2013 until November 2013 and then moved to Waldorf, Md., where he stayed for approximately one year.
In October 2014, Glaser applied for employment with the Beckley VA Medical Center to work as a cardiologist and when the medical center contacted Beckley General to investigate Glaser's credentials and background, Beckley General did not inform the medical center that Glaser was the subject of an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice.
The Beckley VA Medical Center offered Glaser an offer of employment in January 2015 and on Feb. 13, 2015, just days after news agencies reported that Glaser was under investigation, Glaser rescinded his acceptance of the offer of employment by the medical center.
At least 15 lawsuits have been filed against the defendants since January 2015 due to the alleged unnecessary cardiac procedures.
McClung is seeking compensatory and punitive damages. He is being represented by P. Gregory Haddad and John Barrett of Bailey & Glasser LLP.
Raleigh Circuit Court case number: 16-C-235