title: Columbia's top execs resign; is Tenet deal next? Vice Chair Frist steps in to redirect company's course.
abstract: Richard Scott (left), resigned as chairman and chief executive officer of Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corp. and was replaced by industry icon Thomas Frist Jr., M.D. (right), a major Columbia shareholder. Another top Columbia executive, David Vandewater, resigned as controversy around the company grew. Reports surfaced of merger negotiations between Columbia and Tenet Healthcare Corp.
authors.forename: P B
authors.initials: PB
authors.lastname: Limbacher
mesh_terms: D000573:American Hospital Association; D016542:Chief Executive Officers, Hospital; D005607:Fraud; D006075:Governing Board; D006777:Hospitals, Proprietary / Q000458:organization & administration*; D009096:Multi-Institutional Systems / Q000458:organization & administration*; D014481:United States