McPherson contract OK’d; FFH board seeks AG opinion

The Franklin Foundation Hospital board took action on two issues that have generated controversy lately at their meeting last Thursday.
The board decided to move forward with the two issues after months of speculation and negotiation regarding a contract extension for one local doctor and another issue regarding the role of the St. Mary Parish President with the FFH board.
At a FFH board meeting earlier in the year, it was asserted by newly elected St. Mary Parish President David Hanagriff that, according to the parish charter, as president he is a non-voting member of the hospital board. The matter was referred to legal counsel and was not brought up again until the group’s meeting last Thursday.
The board, based upon recommendations from the Louisiana State Attorney General, voted 5-2 to move forward with the effort to determine whether Hanagriff is a member of the board. The request will be sent back to the Attorney General for further consideration. Voting in favor of the measure was FFH Board Chairman Eugene Foulcard, Dr. Nick Accardo, Dr. Roland Degeyter, Clegg Caffery, Jr and Robert Judice, Jr. Voting against the measure was Didi Battle and Allan Von Werder.
The other action taken by the board was in regards to an issue that has been hanging over the heads of the group for months involving extending the contract of Dr. Stephen McPherson. While last year, McPherson’s contract was only extended for a year, this time the board extended the doctor’s contract for five years.
The measure passed by a vote of 4-2 with one abstention. While two board members wanted to continue to negotiate, FFH CEO Craig Cudworth recommended that the group approve the contract. Voting in favor was Foulcard, Von Werder, Battle and Judice. Voting against was Accardo and Caffery. Abstaining from the vote was Degeyter.