Seven board members of Accretive Health, including company founders Mary Tolan and J. Michael Cline, have resigned or don't plan to run for re-election.
That's half of the 14-member board, according to a company filing disclosed late today.
Cline was board chairman from 2009 to 2013, while Tolan was president, CEO and director of the board from 2003 to 2013, according to Chicago-based Accretive's website. They and Arthur Spiegel III, a board member since 2003 and a former co-chairman, resigned effective May 15, the filing said.
Stephen Schuckenbrock, who was Accretive's president and CEO following Tolan, resigned effective May 18.
Accretive is on a long road to recovery under Dr. Emad Rizk, who took over for Schuckenbrock in July. Rizk is leading a company reeling both from accusations that it preyed on vulnerable hospital patients and from the need to restate years of financial reports.
Accretive, which specializes in helping hospitals collect bill payments from patients and insurers, is among the biggest independent companies of its kind. But it faces stiff competition, not just from other players in the hospital billing industry but also from health systems that are bringing the function in-house.
