Alberta Health Services alleges that the demand for unjustified dismissal of the former CEO of the organization is “insignificant” and an attempt to extract a payment of greater compensation.
In a defense statement presented on Friday at the King Court Bank of Edmonton, the Provincial Health Agency says that former CEO Athana Mentzelopoulos ended because he did not fulfill his duties.
The claim says that the demand for mentzelopoulos in response to its termination of January is “unnecessary, unfounded and vexatory.”
Mentzelopoulos, a former Alberta government employee who served as Vice Minister of Finance, filed the lawsuit against AHS and the Minister of Health, Adriana Lagrange, last month.
She states that she was fired two days before she was scheduled to meet with Alberta General Auditor on surgical contracts that, according to her, had links with government officials.
She claims that she was fired, in part, because she had launched a forensic investigation and audit and was reviewing the prices of surgical contracts. His exam was underway as a contract for orthopedic surgeries with the Alberta Surgical Group of Edmonton (ASG) would expire.
His claim says he had concerns about conflicts of interest in the acquisition, and was politically pressed to extend the contracts that worried that they did not have in the best interest of taxpayers.
Mentzolopoulos expanded AHS’s research to include the acquisition of health authority with the MHCare medical supply company. The company secured a $ 70 million contract in 2022 to import pain of the pain of Türkiye’s children during a national drug scarcity. Much of the medicine has never been delivered, and most of the product was never used and is now being stored by AHS.
His statement states that the members of the Board of AHS were concerned enough about their possible conflict findings that recommended that they carry their findings to the RCMP.
In a matter of days, Mentzelopoulos alleges that a government official ordered him to “finish” his investigation and transfer all the information about hiring to Alberta Health.
His accusations have not been tested in court.
Lost trust
In his Friday defense statement, AHS says that the organization lost confidence in Mentzelopoulos skills.
“The plaintiff’s accusations that his employment was completed due to the investigation and audit that began in several contracts of AHS surgical facilities is a diversion of the demanding and the plaintiff’s deficiencies is solely responsible for the completion of his employment,” says the document.
Ahs hired Mentzolopoulos in December 2023 when the government had begun to break AHS in four new organizations.
The province had planned to transfer some of AHS’s functions, such as hiring, acquisition and information technology, to new provincial entities. The plan provides that AHS will become a provider for provision of services focused on acute care.
The Defense Declaration said that although Mentzelopoulos was hired to lead this work for AHS, including the transfer of some personnel and duties to other agencies, it was supposedly ineffective in the role.
The statement alleges that Mentzelopoulos showed an “alarming lack of strategic vision” that interposed in the way of making reforms.
“The lack of repeated will of the plaintiff or the direct refusal to meet the expectations and priorities established by the Minister of Health not only stagnated the essential progress, but actively interrupted the operational and structural advances required for the Reinfoque Plan,” he said.
The statement alleges that the former CEO refused to present and balance the budgets, involved in “non -professional behavior” with government employees, failed to convey information to the Board and communicate changes to AHS staff, among other concerns.
Ahs denies irregularities in the statement, and says that people in the organization were not aware of some of the communications between Mentzelopoulos and government officials.
The agency also denies that the Minister of Health demanded that the Board of AHS to fire Mentzelopoulos or that the Board rejected any demand.
In a defense statement filed in the Court on Thursday, the Minister of Health, Adriana Lagrange, also denied level accusations against the provincial government.
That statement says that Mentzelopoulos was not willing to implement the government’s plan to break the AHS, and “fell in love” of internal investigations in alleged irregularities.
In a statement to CBC News, Dan Scott, the lawyer who represents Mentzelopoulos, said that both the government and the AH have avoided key issues in the claim statement.
“[They] They are now trying to stain Mrs. Mentzelopoulos in an effort to divert the attention of what happened, “says the statement.
He said there was never any suggestion of “supposed performance problems” during the possession of Mentzelopoulos.
“The re -displacement was directed by the Government and the leaders of AHS had little authority to communicate with AHS personnel about the rewriting, except with the express approval and the script of the government,” reads the statement.
“The results of the budget during the Mentzelopoulos time speak for themselves. Regarding other accusations, they are incredibly vague and general to the point of making no sense.”
Alberta RCMP and Alberta General Auditor are now investigating the accusations. The province has appointed a former main judge of Manitoba to direct third party investigation into the acquisition of AHS and Alberta Health.
He says that Mentzelopoulos is entitled to more than $ 580,000 in compensation wages. The former executive is looking for an agreement of $ 1.7 million.
Both AHS and Lagrange are asking for the claim to be dismissed and the plaintiff ordered all legal costs to pay.
