Megan Ryan, who was terminated as president and CEO of Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow, N.Y., filed a lawsuit Sept. 26 against the hospital’s parent company.
Eight things to know:
1. Ms. Ryan is seeking a jury trial and damages against Nassau Health Care Corp. for alleged breach of contract, unequal pay based on sex, and retaliation under New York Labor Law, according to court documents filed in New York state court.
2. The complaint also names the following defendants: Richard Becker, MD, interim CEO of NHCC; Stuart Rabinowitz, chair of NHCC’s board; Richard Kessel, chair and director of the Nassau County Interim Finance Authority; and 10 unnamed individuals. Ms. Ryan accuses these defendants of defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The lawsuit alleges the individuals made and repeated false and libelous statements about Ms. Ryan.
3. According to the lawsuit, Dr. Becker was hired to replace Ms. Ryan at nearly 1.38 times her salary. The suit alleges the hospital mischaracterized her termination as being for cause, withheld final wages, denied contractual severance and engaged in retaliation by filing a separate lawsuit against her.
4. NHCC filed a lawsuit Aug. 13 against Ms. Ryan, seeking at least $10 million in punitive damages. The suit alleges Ms. Ryan authorized $3.5 million in payouts to herself and 13 other executives, including more than $1 million in excess compensation, improper expense reimbursements and the destruction of records. Ms. Ryan’s complaint calls that case retaliatory and frivolous.
5. NHCC will “vigorously contest” Ms. Ryan’s claims, a spokesperson said in a statement shared with Becker’s Sept. 29.
“Her assertion that she was entitled to use public funds as she pleased is baseless and contrary to law,” the spokesperson said. “NHCC’s governing documents and New York law do not allow the CEO to disregard written policies unilaterally. Any attempt to pay amounts beyond the caps and limits set forth in NHCC’s benefits policy requires approval by the NHCC Board of Directors. That approval did not occur here.”
6. Ms. Ryan, who joined NUMC in 2015, was named interim CEO in January 2024 and became permanent CEO in December. She had planned to resign July 20 after a state-approved restructuring of the NHCC board. The board placed her on administrative leave June 10, and Dr. Becker later terminated her for cause. Ms. Ryan has denied any wrongdoing and maintains the payouts she authorized were consistent with NHCC policy and precedent.
7. In December, while under Ms. Ryan’s leadership, the hospital filed a lawsuit against the state of New York, alleging violations of federal Medicaid law deprived it of more than $1 billion in aid. The lawsuit states the new NHCC board members appointed by Gov. Kathy Hochul later fired the attorneys in that case and withdrew the lawsuit, according to Ms. Ryan’s complaint.
8. The NHCC spokesperson said its new leadership team “remains steadfast in its commitment to protect public funds and preserve resources dedicated to serving Nassau County’s most vulnerable residents.”
“We will also aggressively pursue our claims to recover the improper payments she authorized — some of which benefited her personally — as well as other damages caused by her conduct,” the spokesperson said.
Editor’s note: This story was updated at 2:01 p.m. Central time on Sept. 29.
