4A THE WICHITA EAGLE „ THURSDAY, MAY 21, 2009
COM/NEWS
Task force
to fight
Medicare
fraud
BY LESLEY CLARK AND JAY WEAVER
McClatchy Newspapers
WASHINGTON — The
Obama administration on
Wednesday unveiled an anti-
fraud mission aiming to com-
bat billions of dollars in
Medicare scams from Miami to
Los Angeles.
The joint effort by the Justice
Department and the
Department of Health and
Human Services will bolster
Medicare-fraud strike forces in
those coastal cities as well as
establish new ones in Detroit
and Houston, where suspicious
billing schemes have spread,
senior officials said.
The new task force also will
strive to share intelligence and
other real-time data to stop the
criminal activity from taking
root in these and other cities, a
problem that has plagued the
taxpayer-funded program for
elderly, indigent and disabled
people.
Attorney General Eric Holder
stressed that the fight against
Medicare and Medicaid fraud
— estimated to cost at least
$60 billion a year — must
accompany the administra-
tion’s greater ambitions to
reform health care, a monu-
mental political challenge.
“By all accounts, every year
we lose tens of billions of dol-
lars in Medicare and Medicaid
funds to fraud,” said Holder,
who outlined the new initiative
with Health and Human
Services Secretary Kathleen
Sebelius at a news conference.
“Those billions of dollars rep-
resent health-care dollars that
could be spent on medicine,
elder care or emergency room
visits, but instead are wasted
on greed,” he said.
Underdog Kris Allen wins American Idol
From Wichita native Phil
Stacey’s blog, Idol Thoughts, on
Kansas.com.
Kris Allen, the ultimate
underdog, has made one of
the biggest comebacks in tele-
vision history.
After 620 million votes,
19 weeks, 100,000 auditions,
an extra judge and a bikini
girl, Kris Allen is your new
American Idol.
The all-American, married
boy next door defeated the
glammed-out, leather-clad
rocker and is now the eighth
reigning champ in the Idol
kingdom.
Although Adam was an early
favorite with his huge vocals
and in-your-face style and con-
fidence, Kris Allen never gave
up and came from obscurity in
the early rounds to win it all. I
am shocked but think America
made the right choice.
Before the results were
LAND
From Page 1A
“However, we do not believe
that a government whose pur-
pose is to represent the entirety
of the citizens of Sedgwick
County without bias should
create such an unfair playing
field that will largely benefit
one jurisdiction,” Gregory
wrote.
Bel Aire can’t afford to devel- Tim Norton has advocated
op the land, which it bought
about six years ago and
annexed into its city limits in
part to stymie Wichita efforts
to grow into the area north of
Jabara Airport. Interest pay-
ments on the land have been a
drag on the city.
It wouldn’t be fair for
Bel Aire to get the $6.5æmillion meeting Wednesday. “There’s
from the county for the land
but still have control of it,
Gregory said in an interview
Wednesday.
“That’s having your cake and $8,000 an acre. The other is
eating it, too,” she said.
Based on her city administra- annexed by Bel Aire so
tor’s calculations, Gregory said Sedgwick County would have
the county would own 18 per-
cent of the land in Bel Aire’s
jurisdictional boundary if it
bought the acreage.
“Such a vested interest in one
community within our county
raises concern among the citi-
zens of my community and
their governing body,” Gregory might arise.
wrote.
Pile’s letter was similar.
“The prudent approach
would require the City of
Bel Aire to de-annex the prop-
The Hubble Space Telescope, following repairs and upgrades, is good for another five or
10 years, chief Hubble repairman John Grunsfeld said Wednesday.
Astronaut credits
his uncle in repair
BY SETH BORENSTEIN gyroscopes and insulation.
Associated Press But the job that gave astro-
nauts the most trouble was a
HOUSTON — Sometimes stuck hand rail on Hubble’s
all the high-tech training is once-dead spectrograph.
nothing compared to what Massimino was trying to
Uncle Frank and a big screw- unscrew a bolt on the hand
driver can teach an astronaut rail during Sunday’s space-
about removing stubborn walk. After more than an
parts, even 350 miles above hour with no luck, NASA
Earth. engineers on the ground told
During a news conference Massimino to just pull it off.
in orbit Wednesday, Space So Massimino recalled his
Shuttle Atlantis astronaut Uncle Frank, a balky car oil
Mike Massimino credited a filter, a big screwdriver, and
colorful relative from Long some brute force.
Island for showing him what a “Out of all the education
yank will do when a part just I’ve had, it was thinking of
won’t budge. my Uncle Frank and I won’t
During five consecutive — tell you what he was saying,”
and at times frustrating — Massimino said. “I didn’t use
spacewalks to repair the 19- that language, but he yanked
year-old Hubble Space on that thing until he broke
Telescope, astronauts revived that thing free.”
two dead science instruments, “That pretty much was my
installed a more powerful experience that helped me
camera and a second spectro- with that (spectrograph)
graph, and replaced batteries, repair,” Massimino said.
you want from Adam.
IDOL THOUGHTS As one last gift to the Idol
fans, both guys joined together
Catch up with what Wichita for what we have been waiting
native and former “American for all season: Adam singing
Idol” finalist Phil Stacey said Queen’s “We Are the
throughout the season on Champions.” And surprisingly,
his Idol Thoughts blog at Kris holding his own.
Kansas.com. As always, the three minutes
it took to give us the results
were crammed at the end of a
two-hour celebrity binge of
given, Adam and Kris high- self-promotion, an opportunity
lighted their polar opposite I wouldn’t pass up but found
styling in perfect fashion. admittedly annoying.
Kris paired up with Keith Highlights included new
Urban and gave us a radio- judge Kara DioGuardi showing
worthy version of “Kiss A Girl.” up Bikini Girl in a vocal duel
I think this performance is and then adding salt to the
exactly why he is the American wounds by stripping down to a
Idol. Even with Keith Urban on bikini as an inside joke/charity
the stage with him, the song bet among the judges and
sounded like it should be on Ryan Seacrest. The Top 13
his album. had lots of face time with each
Adam gave us a bigger-than- Idol getting at least one fea-
life collaboration with Kiss, ture spot — something my
platform boots, space-shoulder season did not get, oh well.
pads and all. It was everything Tomorrow the real work
erty and further agree the
industrial park would remain
(in the) County,” Pile wrote.
Bel Aire city administrator Ty
He added that the de-annex-
ation issue isn’t as important to
him because if the county
pushes for that, BelæAire would-
Lasher said last week that the n’t supply water and sewer ser-
city would like the land to vices to the land. That would
remain in its limits. mean the county would have to
get water from a rural water
Commissioners unsure district, which BelæAire officials
say could prove a problem.
Meanwhile, it doesn’t appear Leaders of the Greater
that all commissioners are Wichita Economic
completely sold on buying the Development Coalition spoke
land, which board member in favor of the plan, saying the
Wichita area has lost business
should be done by unanimous opportunities by not having a
vote. In addition to $6.5 mil- large industrial park with
lion for the land, the county access to rail.
would pay $900,000 to put in a Welshimer said she thinks it
rail spur and spend $6.8 mil- may be a good idea for the
lion on streets. county to place an option to
“I am right in the middle,” buy the land instead of buying
commissioner Gwen it outright.
Welshimer said after a lengthy “I like the idea of an option
because that way we’re not
several things that bother me.” spending all that money in
One is the price of the land hard times,” she said. “It would
— at $6.5æmillion for 808 put pressure on GWEDC to find
acres, it’s just more than us a tenant or a buyer, and
that’s where that should go.
whether the land should be de- Otherwise, we’re going to be
under constant stress on how
to activate the site we just
more control over the park, spent $14æmillion on.”
such as what tax incentives to Pile, the Valley Center
offer and what businesses administrator, said in an inter-
would locate there. view that he thinks the site
Commissioner Karl Peterjohn seems to be ideal for a park
said many questions remain, because of its accessibility to
he said, and he’s concerned rail and proximity to the high-
about additional costs that way. But like Welshimer, he
wonders about the price.
Commissioner Dave Unruh “We’re not trying to sound
said he still is inclined to sup- selfish,” Pile said. “The council
port the plan. just wants to make sure before
“I want to hear what every- the county spends (the money)
one has to say,” he said. that this project was fully eval-
Associated Press
Also Wednesday, Mission
Control told Atlantis that its
heat shield was safe for land-
ing, but stormy weather in
Florida could force Friday’s
landing to be rescheduled.
Astronauts have started con-
serving power in case they
have to stay in space a day or
two longer.
The energy savings will
allow Atlantis to stay in orbit
through Monday if necessary,
said shuttle program deputy
manager LeRoy Cain.
Astronauts had Wednesday
off after releasing the Hubble
a day earlier.
They said their upgrades of
the telescope showed how
important it is to have humans
and machines work together
in space.
“What we’ve done is give
Hubble five or maybe 10 more
years of life,” chief Hubble
repairman John Grunsfeld
said.
begins for Kris and the rest of
the crew. They are joining the
real world of the music indus-
try and will start doing every-
thing they can to parlay this
amazing experience of
American Idol into a huge life-
long career. But I hope each of
them savor tonight as a very
special moment in their lives.
I want to give my congratu-
lations to Kris and all his fans.
He is a worthy Idol and I am
truly excited for his CD. Adam
and his fans should also be
very proud. He is a superstar
in his own right, and we will
be seeing lots from him.
Thanks for sharing Idol with
me this season and until next
year, please keep in touch on
Facebook, Twitter and
www.philstacey.com. I should
be coming around Ta-town
soon. And don’t forget to
check out my new album,
“Into the Light” on Aug. 25.
Peace out and be blessed!
uated and the entire county
would show benefit.”
Other opponents
Taxpayers and private devel-
opers also spoke against the
plan.
Resident John Todd said
BelæAire “tried its hand at spec-
ulative land development.æ.æ.æ.
The fact that no private devel-
oper has stepped up to buy the
land should tell us something.”
Speaking as a taxpayer and
commercial developer, Larry
Rickard said that the plan
essentially asks taxpayers to
“take over an already failed
government project.”
Johnny Stevens, one of the
Waterfront’s developers, ques-
tioned why the BelæAire site is
the only place for a park.
He said he owns 200 acres of
industrial land and “I have
never once had a person from
the GWEDC, chamber, county
or city call me about a prospect
in 38 years,” he said.
Vicki Pratt Gerbino, presi-
dent of the GWEDC, countered
that her organization doesn’t
call landowners about prospec-
tive business but sends e-mail
“blasts” to brokers who repre-
sent listed properties.
Stevens said private business
— not the county — should
step up to the plate.
“Instead of thinking of the
government as the first solu-
tion,” he said, “think of them as
the last solution.”
Reach Deb Gruver at 316-268-6400
or dgruver@wichitaeagle.com.
K-STATE
From Page 1A
inadvertently discovered last
week.”
At president Jon Wefald’s
request, Krause resigned his
job Wednesday as director of
development for K-State’s
Olathe Innovation campus.
Neither returned messages for
comment.
Incoming president Kirk
Schulz and incoming athletic
director John Currie were also
unavailable.
Prince’s lawyer, Neil
Cornrich, said it’s a valid con-
tract.
“Coach Ron Prince entered
into a legally binding con-
tract with Kansas State
University and the
Intercollegiate Athletic
Council of Kansas State
University Inc.,” he said in a
statement. “æ.æ.æ. Not only it is
inaccurate to claim that this
was a secret agreement, but
also it makes no sense since
the contract was mutually
agreed upon, signed and
legally binding.”
Cornrich could not be
reached for comment beyond
his statement. Prince also
could not be reached.
K-State’s claim is that
Krause acted alone, but how
such a deal could arise
remains a mystery.
“I would have not even
thought of doing a deal like
that, and I don’t think I
would have been able to,”
said Max Urick, K-State’s
athletic director from 1993 to
2001. “A sum of that size,
that’d have to have been seen
by more than one set of eyes.
“I’m flabbergasted.”
The memorandum of
understanding stipulates
Prince’s corporation, IPP
(In Pursuit of Perfection), is
due $800,000 on Dec. 31,
2015, $800,000 on Dec. 31,
2016, and $1.6æmillion on
Dec. 31, 2020. Where the
money would come from is
unclear.
“This happened on my
watch,” Wefald said in a
statement. “I appointed
Bob Krause to be athletic
director. He has been a
longtime friend. I regret
deeply and apologize that
this happened while I was
president.”
Wefald and Krause have
worked side-by-side since
1977, when Wefald was the
president at Southwest State
University in Marshall,
Minn., and Krause was the
vice president of student
affairs.
Wefald’s last day at K-State
is June 30.
Adding up
Wednesday’s disclosures
are the latest in a litany of
questionable financial deal-
ings in the past 17 months,
most with Krause as athletic
director.
In February 2008, Krause
and soon-to-resign athletic
director Tim Weiser agreed
on a five-year, $1.9æmillion
consultant arrangement for
Weiser. And from 2001 to
2008, Krause received almost
$300,000 in consulting fees
from the athletic department
while he was K-State’s vice
president of institutional
advancement.
Once K-State learned of the
agreement with Prince,
Wefald said, several days
were spent attempting to
convince Prince — who was
17-20 in three seasons — and
Cornrich why the agreement
should be voided.
“That failed,” Wefald said
in the statement.
A major thrust in the suit is
K-State’s claim that Prince’s
IPP did not exist when he
and Krause signed the
memorandum of understand-
ing. The Kansas Department
of Revenue verified
Wednesday that IPP was cre-
ated Dec. 23, 2008, months
after the agreement was
reached.
On Jan. 27, prior to his
move to Olathe, Krause
said he was leaving the ath-
letic department on solid
footing.
“For almost a year now, I
have worked with the athlet-
ic department since this has
been a high priority for the
university as it makes a tran-
sition of leadership in the
president’s office,” he said. “I
believe the department is in
very good shape.”
After Wednesday, that can’t
be the case — especially with
progress on a $70æmillion
expansion of athletic facilities
stalled. Under Weiser, there
was a multimillion-dollar
reserve and a yearly budget
in the black. According to
sources, the reserve is
exhausted and the budget is
WWW.KANSAS.
BOB KRAUSE’S
INVOLVEMENT IN
K-STATE ATHLETICS
2008
Feb. 14 — A week before
his resignation as athletic
director, Tim Weiser signs a
consulting agreement with
Kansas State. He will earn
$1.9 million over five years
and be eligible for re-hire as
an instructor in 2014, as
well as other perks. Bob
Krause, vice president for
institutional advancement,
signs on behalf of the uni-
versity.
Feb. 21 — Weiser resigns
to become deputy commis-
sioner of the Big 12
Conference. Krause, chair-
man of at least three past
athletic director search
committees, is named to
oversee the department on
an interim basis.
April 4 — President Jon
Wefald names Krause ath-
letic director. Krause, 62, is
given a five-year contract
and keeps his university VP
job. His $210,000 salary is
increased to $225,000.
April 16 — Men’s basket-
ball coach Frank Martin
signs a five-year contract
worth $760,000 annually,
just more than one year
past the date when he
accepted the job.
May 12 — Assistant
men’s basketball coach
Dalonte Hill signs a con-
tract worth $400,000 his
first season, $420,000 for
the remaining four years.
He’s believed to be the
highest-paid assistant in the
country.
May 12 — Wefald
announces his retirement
effective at the end of the
2008-09 school year.
Aug. 7 — Football coach
Ron Prince, who’s 12-13 in
two seasons, agrees to a
new, five-year contract —
essentially a two-year
extension of his original
deal — worth $1.1æmillion
annually plus incentives. It
also includes a buyout of
$1.2æmillion to Prince if he
is fired prior to the 2009
season, $900,000 more
than his former contract.
Nov. 5 — Krause fires
Prince four days after a 52-
21 loss to rival Kansas.
Prince coaches the
Wildcats in the final three
games and ends with a 17-
20 record in three seasons.
Nov. 24 — Bill Snyder is
named K-State football
coach for a second time.
Snyder was 136-68-1 from
1989 to 2005 and will earn
$1.8 million annually for five
years. Krause says he
talked to no other coaches
about the job.
2009
Jan. 27 _ Krause resigns
as athletic director to
become director of devel-
opment for K-State’s
Olathe Innovation campus.
Wefald said it was Krause’s
decision and that he “could
have been athletic director
until I left.”
Feb. 13 _ The Eagle
reports that the athletic
department made pay-
ments totaling $298,437 to
Krause from 2001 to 2008,
including after Krause
became athletic director.
Wefald compared the pay-
ments to compensation
professors receive when
forced to assume extra
teaching responsibilities.
May 11 — Associate ath-
letic director Jim Epps is
notified of an Aug. 7, 2008
agreement between Krause
and Prince that will make
$3.2 million in deferred pay-
ments to Prince between
2015 and 2020.
Wednesday — K-State
files a lawsuit in Riley
County District Court to
void the agreement, con-
tending that Prince’s lawyer
should’ve received permis-
sion from university lawyers
to negotiate directly with
Krause. Krause resigns from
the university at Wefald’s
request.
in the red.
Urick, the former athletic
director, called the situation
“horrible.”
“But I’m not surprised,” he
said. “There’s been a recent
pattern of recklessness, self-
ishness and a disregard for
the university.”
Reach Jeffrey Martin at
316-269-6763 or
jmartin@wichitaeagle.com.