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MHA's August 19 Letter to Hospital CEO's...
The following letter was received by a friend in south Missouri. Marc Smith is the president of the Missouri Hospital Association (MHA), and the letter went out to hospital administrators across the state.
First, the law (130.031.8 RSMo) states that "8. Any person publishing, circulating, or distributing any printed matter relative to any candidate for public office or any ballot measure shall on the face of the printed matter identify in a clear and conspicuous manner the person who paid for the printed matter with the words "Paid for by" followed by the proper identification of the sponsor pursuant to this section. For the purposes of this section, "printed matter" shall be defined to include any pamphlet, circular, handbill, sample ballot, advertisement, including advertisements in any newspaper or other periodical, sign, including signs for display on motor vehicles, or other imprinted or lettered material..." The letter does NOT include the required "Paid for by", and is thus a violation of the law.
Second, the first sentence of the letter states that "MHA has made a substantial commitment to Mark Sheehan's campaign." Given that MHA is a not-for-profit 501(c)(6) corporation, such political involvement may jeopardize their tax-exempt status! The letter, sent with Marc Smith's personal address at the top, and sent to members of MHA on MHA's behalf, is obviously a thinly-veiled attempt to skirt the rules regarding the political involvement of not-for-profit entities... else why would he not have sent it directly with MHA's name at the top??? It appears that MHA may be violating the law???
Page 18 of MHA's 2006 form 990 (available at www.guidestar.com) reveals Marc Smith's compensation to be $783,672 that year. MHA is upset because I stopped the hospital industry from achieving a $100 million windfall at taxpayer expense this year (see my recent letter to the editor below.) Don't they make enough money...?
I'm flattered that MHA fears my progressing to the Senate. This year, I stopped them from ripping off the taxpayers of $100 million dollars a year. In 2004, I forced Missouri hospitals to clean up their infection problem. I'll continue to fight for increased competition in health care, and they know it. Look at the lengths to which they are going to stop me!
Rob