YOUNGSTOWN — A Youngstown health system is taking two of its own physician owners to court over a planned sale to the Cleveland Clinic. Southwoods Health filed suit Oct. 1 in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court against Dr. David Weimer and Dr. James Jamison, both orthopedic surgeons and partners in Youngstown Orthopaedic Associates.
According to the complaint, the orthopedic practice signed a nonbinding letter of intent to sell its assets to the Cleveland Clinic — a move Southwoods says would breach ownership agreements the two doctors signed when they bought into the health system. Those agreements bar the physicians from employment with, or conflicting arrangements with, competing facilities within 30 miles of Southwoods for two years after they leave.
Southwoods says the restriction is critical to its survival because 90 to 92 percent of its patient volume comes from inside that 30-mile radius. The system operates the Surgical Hospital at Southwoods, a physician-owned hospital in which physicians hold 49 percent of the shares, according to the filing.
The lawsuit also lays out what the doctors have earned through their ownership. Since 2012, Weimer has received more than $1.29 million in distributions and Jamison more than $1.68 million, with each drawing an estimated $250,000 to $500,000 a year in professional fees from patients reached through the Southwoods network.
In a June 18 email cited in the filing, the physicians told Southwoods the orthopedic group would cease to operate if the sale went through and that it was possible they would become Cleveland Clinic employees. They said they hoped to keep their Southwoods ownership stakes and continue bringing cases to the hospital.
Southwoods is asking the court for a restraining order and an injunction blocking the doctors from participating in the deal or working for the Cleveland Clinic while the case proceeds.
