'Suboptimal at best': Embattled ex-Nashville General CEO to get an $890K settlement
Joseph Webb, the embattled former CEO of Nashville General Hospital, stepped down from his position several weeks ago just hours before the release of a scathing audit report covering various examples of mismanagement at the community's safety net hospital. Now, he's getting a more than $890,000 payout.
On Tuesday, the Metro Nashville Council authorized the Metro Department of Law to pay Webb an $890,813.26 settlement after he claimed to be owed more than $1 million in unpaid salary and retirement benefits from his 10 years as the hospital's top official.
The settlement was approved by a 34-1 vote, with District 12 Council Member Erin Evans the lone "no" vote. Council members Tonya Hancock, Jennifer Webb, Brandon Taylor and Courtney Johnston abstained, and District 22 Council Member Sheri Weiner was absent.
Several council members voiced their hesitancy ahead of the vote. Some, like Evans, said they felt the payout was too high. Others like Johnston said it was a situation that gave her "heartburn."
District 2 Council Member Kyonzté Toombs, on the other hand, said the settlement had nothing to do with Webb's performance and cautioned her colleagues against "adding acrimony" to an already strained relationship between Nashville General and the city. And District 5 Council Member Sean Parker urged the group to consider the bigger picture and turn the page on the hospital's current state.
Metro Law Director Wally Dietz reminded council members that the settlement was also meant to help Metro avoid a lawsuit and likely "contentious and uncertain" trial. Along with the payout, Dietz said Webb agreed to drop any other outstanding claims he could have against the city.
"This situation's suboptimal, at a minimum," Dietz told council members. "But we are where we are."
The search for Webb's replacement is still underway. In the meantime, Chief Nursing Officer Veronica Elders was announced as the hospital's acting manager in early March.
Along with the settlement, council members unanimously approved — with District 26 Council Member Courtney Johnston abstaining — another resolution related to Nashville General Tuesday night, authorizing a $10 million payment to the Hospital Authority of Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County.
At-Large Council Member Delishia Porterfield, the chair of the council's Budget and Finance Committee, told the group that the funds are meant to help the hospital maintain its current level of operations through the end of the current fiscal year, and also to address some of the concerns outlined in the audit.
Along with the $10 million added to the hospital's coffers Tuesday, Nashville General received a more than $59.5 million subsidy in the 2025 Metro budget.
Austin Hornbostel is the Metro reporter for The Tennessean. Have a question about local government you want an answer to? Reach him at ahornbostel@tennessean.com.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Embattled ex-Nashville General CEO to get $890K settlement
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