CHARLESTON – Kanawha Circuit Judge Tod J. Kaufman was made aware Oct. 27 in court that West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey’s office sent part of a 15-page court-sealed document to the Federal Trade Commission.
The document was related to the merger of Cabell Huntington Hospital and St. Mary’s Medical Center and was sent without the court’s permission. The document was an index that identifies 350 records related to the merger.
Morrisey’s office alleges that it never received a copy of Kaufman’s order from Sept. 7 stating the document was to be kept under seal, although court records show that it was mailed to Morrisey’s office.
Bob Leslie, the senior deputy attorney general, told the Charleston Gazette-Mail that he did not believe they had violated a court order.
Leslie said there was no specific intent to thwart a court order or to ignore a court order. He insists the attorney general’s office never received the order.
Morrisey’s office, along with the FTC, investigated the hospital merger last year.
Steel of West Virginia opposes the merger of the hospitals, alleging it will raise healthcare costs and lower the quality of care.