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WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 23, 2011 Breaking news at: New Business Commerce www.redbluffdailynews.com See Page 5A RED BLUFF Double Hat Trick SPORTS 1B Partly cloudy 54/35 Weather forecast 8B Staff Report DAILYNEWS TEHAMACOUNTY DAILY 50¢ T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U N T Y S I N C E 1 8 8 5 Catholic Healthcare West, the parent organization of St. Elizabeth Community Hospital, has agreed to pay the United States $9.1 million to settle allegations that seven of its hos- pitals submitted false claims in their Medicare cost reports. The settlement resolves alle- gations that three CHW hospi- tals received overpayments due to Medicare processing errors but did not return the funds when they discovered the erro- neous payments. All of the con- CHWagrees to pay $9M to settle false claims ‘After a decade of reviewing these duct at issue occurred during the 1990s, U.S. Attorney Ben- jamin Wagner said. St. Elizabeth Community Hospital is one of the three hos- pitals that allegedly did not return overpayments, according to a press release issued by Wagner. The other two hospitals were Community Hospital of San Bernardino and St. Bernadine Medical Center in San Bernardino. “Catholic Healthcare West has been cooperating with the United States Department of records, some instances of errors were discovered. CHW is committed to ethical business practices, denies that it intentionally withheld funds, and is pleased to have resolved this matter’ CHW spokeswoman Tricia Griffin Justice since 2001 to review costs reports related to patient care delivered at our hospitals between 1990 and 2000,” CHW Cattle moved after attacks spokeswoman Tricia Griffin said in an e-mail. “After a decade of reviewing these records, some instances of errors were discovered. CHW is committed to ethical business practices, denies that it inten- tionally withheld funds, and is pleased to have resolved this matter.” The settlement resolved alle- gations that O’Connor Hospital in San Jose, Seton Medical Center in Daly City and St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical See CHW, page 7A Dogs stolen from shelter Two dogs were stolen over the holiday weekend from the Tehama County Animal Care Center, 1830 Walnut St., in Red Bluff. The dogs, both of whom were intact males, were taken from the facility sometime between Sunday after- noon and Monday morning, said center manager Mark Storrey. One of the dogs is described as a red Australian cat- See DOGS, page 7A County to look at redistricting By ANDREA WAGNER Daily News photo by Andrea Wagner Ranchers have moved many head of livestock after efforts to locate attacking dogs in Eastern Tehama County failed. By ANDREA WAGNER DN Staff Writer In response to recent cattle killings by dogs in eastern Tehama County, some ranchers have moved their live- stock to keep them safe. Stan Gordon, 40, of Bonanza, Ore., and his partners Morgan Rourke and Mike Watnur, relocated their remain- ing cattle to land in Cottonwood when efforts failed to find the dogs responsi- ble for killing more than 15 of their animals. “It’s been kind of a devastating blow,” Gordon said. Domestic breed dogs have been attacking area cattle in Mineral and Manton, where more than 20 head have been killed. After spending an unsuccessful week in the canyon pastures off Pon- derosa Way in Mineral, including two or three days on horseback trying to find missing cattle or any sign of the dogs, Gordon decided he had to pull GOP bill would end state pension bargaining SACRAMENTO (AP) — Following the lead of Wisconsin’s governor, a Republican state assembly- man announced legislation Tuesday intended to elimi- nate collective bargaining for pension benefits by Cal- ifornia’s public employees. The bill by Assembly- man Allan Mansoor of Costa Mesa attempts to address the soaring costs of retired public employees, but has little chance in a Legislature controlled by Democrats. Pension reform has become a hot topic in Cali- fornia and many other states hammered by the recession, aging popula- tions and hangovers from generous benefits granted to public employees during better economic times. The debate has come to a head in Wisconsin, where Republican Gov. Scott Walker has proposed strip- ping most non-safety public employees of most collec- tive bargaining rights. The proposal has prompted massive protests and a walkout by Democratic lawmakers. ‘‘I stand with the legisla- tors in the Midwest who are taking brave steps to stand with the citizens,’’ Mansoor said in a telephone inter- view. ‘‘It’s very hard to rein things in under the current process. Pensions are out of control. They have to be brought back in line with the private sector.’’ See BILL, page 7A 7 5 8 5 5 1 6 9 0 0 1 9 Red Bluff Outdoor Power the livestock out. “I was up there for a week straight trying to catch them, and I couldn’t even put an eyeball on one of them,” Gordon said. Gordon’s group has lost at least $15,000 worth of cattle to the attacks, and at least five other cows, worth $7,000 or more, have gone missing. “It’s been a severe financial hit,” he said. See CATTLE, page 7A Final orphaned cub goes home Special to the DN An orphaned black bear cub was safely returned to its remote Northern California forest home this week after five months at a Lake Tahoe wildlife care facility. Once near death, the male yearling cub has been deemed by experts to be fully rehabilitated, healthy and very likely able to survive on its own, according to a press release from the Depart- ment of Fish and Game. The cub was emaciat- ed and near death when it was first spotted by a log- ger working in the Lassen National Forest in Tehama County in Sep- tember 2010. Evidence at the scene indicated that the bear’s mother had died before the cub learned to DN Staff Writer The Elections Division of the Tehama County Clerk & Recorder will be looking into redrawing dis- trict boundaries if the 2010 census data reveal a change is necessary. Redistricting is required by state law every 10 years, following a census every 10 years. The 2010 census data is due to local govern- ments by April 1, and aren’t available yet, said Beverly Ross, registrar of voters. The Elections Division will bring proposals to the Board of Supervisors in late May or early June if redistricting is deemed necessary, she said. If proposals are brought forward, there would need to be two public hearings set sometime in Septem- ber, Ross said in an infor- mational presentation to the board Feb. 15. The district boundaries have not been adjusted since 1990, Ross said. There was not a need in 2000 as population changes were less than 5 percent. Using computerized mapping technology and help from staff in the Pub- lic Works Department, processing the data will be easier than it has been before, Ross said. A work group of staff from County Administra- tion, Public Works, the Planning Department, the County Assessor and the County Counsel will be See COUNTY, page 7A Courtesy photo Staff from DFG and U.S. Forest Service transport the sedated bear cub to a carefully chosen location deep in the woods. forage for food on its own. It was suffering from severe hair loss, which would have made it unlikely to survive the approaching winter. A warden from the Department of Fish and Game captured the cub with a trap. When it arrived at Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care, a licensed See CUB, page 7A PHYSICIAN REFERRAL A FREE SERVICE PROVIDED FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE 1-800-990-9971 CHW North State Region