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On May 9, 2024, Senator Rick Scott said he and his company had faced “political persecution” while speaking outside Donald Trump’s New York criminal trial. That was Scott’s characterization of the Columbia/HCA investigation. The Justice Department’s records document criminal pleas by HCA subsidiaries and large corporate settlements, but they do not establish that the investigation was political retaliation or that Scott personally was convicted.
What Rick Scott said about political persecution
Rolling Stone reported that Scott spoke outside Trump’s trial on May 9, 2024, and said: “I’m fed up. I watched what happened to me and my company. I’ve talked to businesspeople over the years [about] what’s happened to them, when you have political persecution.”
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Scott also alleged a link to his opposition to Hillary Clinton’s health plan: “After it was defeated, she used the Justice Department to go after me and my company.” That is Scott’s claim about the government’s motive; the cited Justice Department records describe the case’s resolutions but do not substantiate that allegation. Rolling Stone’s May 2024 report
What the Justice Department records show
2000: Criminal pleas and more than $840 million in penalties and restitution
On December 14, 2000, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that HCA subsidiaries had agreed to pay more than $840 million in criminal fines, civil restitution, and penalties. The announcement described guilty pleas by subsidiaries, including a plea involving conspiracy to defraud the United States and fraudulent Medicare upcoding. It also described a corporate integrity agreement requiring compliance work and audits over eight years. U.S. Department of Justice, December 14, 2000
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2003: A further civil settlement and $1.7 billion in combined recoveries
On June 26, 2003, DOJ announced a $631 million civil settlement. The department said that, alongside earlier criminal, civil, and administrative settlements, the resolution brought combined government recoveries from HCA to $1.7 billion. DOJ described the civil settlement as resolving false-claims liability arising from practices that included cost-report fraud and physician kickbacks. The $1.7 billion figure is a combined recovery across multiple resolutions—not one criminal fine or a Medicare-only payment. U.S. Department of Justice, June 26, 2003
What the case does—and does not—establish about Scott
The DOJ announcements concern HCA and its subsidiaries. They establish corporate and subsidiary resolutions, including criminal pleas by subsidiaries and civil settlements. They do not establish that Scott personally pleaded guilty or was convicted in those resolutions. Nor do the cited records show that investigators acted to punish Scott for opposing Clinton’s health plan.
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A 1997 Washington Post report described allegations contained in an FBI affidavit; those allegations should not be treated as findings of guilt. The Washington Post, July 23, 1997
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Scott’s earlier statement on his role as CEO
Rolling Stone’s 2024 article also quoted a 2010 campaign statement in which Scott said: “As I have said repeatedly, Columbia/HCA made mistakes, and I take responsibility for what happened on my watch as CEO.” That earlier statement acknowledged responsibility for events during his tenure; it does not establish personal criminal liability or prove his later claim about political motive. Rolling Stone’s May 2024 report
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