Click to watch video

“It is a crime that a hospital buys another hospital and shuts it down,” said Dr. Richard Pohil, one of 109 doctors suing Memorial Hermann Healthcare System for causing the closure of Town & Country Hospital in West Houston.

For the first time, several doctors in the lawsuit sat down with 11 News to explain what they believe Memorial Hermann did and why they think patients are now suffering.

"Basically what Memorial Hermann did is they went to insurance companies like Aetna and United and said, 'If you deal with that hospital, we won't deal with you anymore,'" said Richard Zook, an attorney with Thompson & Knight, LLP, who represents some of the doctors that invested in Town & Country Hospital.

AP

"Put simply, if you were a member of Aetna or United and you were a patient and wanted to go to this hospital, you couldn't," Zook added.

In 2005, Town & Country Hospital opened at Beltway 8 and the Katy Freeway. The state-of-the-art hospital closed in January 2007. It was conceptualized by doctors who practiced at Memorial Hermann but wanted more control over the patient care they provided.

"Over time it became more a little more bureaucratic [to practice at Memorial Hermann]. More corporate. It became more difficult to take care of our patients in the way we would like to," Pohil said.

In lawsuits filed this summer, the doctors claim Memorial Hermann Healthcare System “used atrocious bully tactics to organize an illegal boycott” by insurance companies.

"Memorial Hermann thought the problem was they estimated they'd lose 15 percent of their business,” said famed Houston attorney Rusty Hardin who represents the doctors as well. “[Memorial Hermann’s] latest study showed they probably wouldn't have lost any of their business. The people who would have gained would have been the public."

The lawsuit which alleges a violation of the Texas Free Enterprise and Antitrust Act asks for $100,000,000 in damages.

"This isn't just about doctors having lost their investment. It's about the loss of a hospital and most importantly the loss of patients on the west side of Houston to have an alternative," Zook said.

Memorial Hermann ended up purchasing the hospital. A call to Memorial Hermann seeking comment was not immediately returned.