HealthSouth is a well-known health care corporation that once dominated the health care market in the United States. The company specializes in providing medical services, such as cancer treatment, heart disease management and orthopedic care to people with lower incomes. In addition, HealthSouth also provides end-of-life options for its patients. It also has outpatient dialysis centers and obesity programs for its clients. The corporation operates in more than 100 countries and has approximately 44,000 employees.

What Kind Of Company Was HealthSouth?

HealthSouth was a publicly traded corporation based in Birmingham, Alabama providing medical services to patients around the world. It was founded in 1984 by Richard M. Scrushy and quickly became one of the largest companies of its kind in the US. Despite its success, HealthSouth soon fell into trouble as financial scandals and frauds shook confidence in the company. In this article, we’ll explore what kind of company HealthSouth was, how it rose to prominence, and what ultimately led to its downfall.

HealthSouth's History

HealthSouth Corporation is a for-profit health care provider headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. The company began operations in 1984 and was founded by current CEO Richard Scrushy. HealthSouth operates inpatient rehabilitation hospitals, outpatient rehabilitation satellite clinics, and home health agencies across the United States.

In 2003, HealthSouth became embroiled in one of the largest corporate accounting scandals in U.S. history. It was revealed that HealthSouth had been engaged in widespread accounting fraud since its inception. The scandal led to the resignation of CEO Richard Scrushy and the eventual sale of the company to a group of investors led by former University of Alabama football coach Mike DuBose.

Despite the scandal, HealthSouth has remained a large and successful company. It has continued to grow through acquisitions and now has over 90 locations across the United States.

What Happened to HealthSouth?

In 2003, HealthSouth Corporation was embroiled in one of the biggest corporate accounting scandals in U.S. history. The company, which was founded in 1984 and operated a network of rehabilitation hospitals across the country, was accused of overstating its earnings by billions of dollars over a period of several years.

The scandal came to light after an internal investigation uncovered evidence that executives at HealthSouth had been doctoring the company's books in order to meet Wall Street expectations. When the truth was revealed, HealthSouth's stock price plummeted, and the company was forced to restate its earnings for the previous five years.

Several top executives at HealthSouth, including founder Richard Scrushy, were indicted on federal fraud charges. Scrushy was acquitted at his 2006 trial, but several other executives pleaded guilty and served time in prison. In the wake of the scandal, HealthSouth agreed to pay $325 million to settle civil fraud charges brought by the SEC.

Today, HealthSouth is still in business, but it has a much smaller footprint than it did before the scandal. The company has sold off most of its hospital properties and now focuses on providing outpatient rehabilitation services.

The Aftermath of HealthSouth

After the fraud was uncovered, HealthSouth's stock price plummeted and the company was forced to sell off many of its assets. In 2006, the company emerged from bankruptcy and is now a much smaller operation. Its current CEO, Jay Grinney, has worked to rebuild the company's reputation and make it a leader in the rehabilitation industry.

What Can We Learn from HealthSouth?

HealthSouth was a for-profit hospital chain that was founded in 1984. The company was known for its aggressive expansion and for its use of outpatient surgery centers. HealthSouth became the largest provider of rehabilitation services in the United States.

In 2003, the company came under investigation for fraud. It was alleged that the company had engaged in a years-long scheme to overbill Medicare and other insurers for patient care. The company's CEO, Richard Scrushy, was indicted on federal charges related to the fraud.

The company declared bankruptcy in 2003 and emerged from bankruptcy in 2006. In 2013, Scrushy was acquitted of all charges related to the fraud.

What can we learn from HealthSouth?

1) For-profit companies may be more likely to engage in fraudulent behavior in order to boost their bottom line.

2) Companies that are expanding rapidly may be more likely to engage in fraudulent activities as they try to keep up with the growth.

3) Company leaders who are indicted on criminal charges may still be ultimately cleared of those charges.

Conclusion

HealthSouth was a healthcare provider and services company with operations throughout the United States. Despite being one of the largest companies in its industry, HealthSouth found itself embroiled in scandal and declared bankruptcy in 2003. The ultimate result for investors was devastating losses as stock prices plummeted from their high point to near zero. Although HealthSouth has since emerged from bankruptcy, it serves as an important reminder of the risks associated with investing in large corporations that may not always have the best interests of shareholders at heart.