Gilbertson-WebMD split an embarrassing moment
A Healthcare InfoTech Staff Report
An apparent split between WebMD (Atlanta) and former high-ranking HBO & Co. (HBOC; also Atlanta) executive Jay Gilbertson turned publicly embarrassing this week. WebMD announced that Gilbertson had resigned after only seven months as president and chief operating officer of the high-flying healthcare Internet company, but Gilbert son denied having left.
While it may be only a matter of semantics or of separation details being worked out, the apparent split which the Atlanta Journal-Constitution labeled "awkward" means that WebMD will lose a highly experienced executive who has helped lend credibility to the promise that has fueled the firm’s rocket-like rise in the eyes of the investor community.
Whenever it actually occurs, one explanation for the departure of Gilbertson may simply be that there will be no room at the inn when the recently announced merger of WebMD and Healtheon (Santa Clara, CA) is completed. As one analyst who follows the companies noted: "When you put two companies together, there’s not always room at the top."
Some industry watchers have speculated that Gilbertson’s role in accounting irregularities that occurred at HBOC when he served as chief financial officer of that firm is under investigation, and have suggested that may have something to do with his departure from WebMD, in which McKesson HBOC has a $30 million investment. Gilbertson, however, has denied any such connection.
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