NEW YORK (AP) — The chief government officer of a agency employed by New York Metropolis to deal with and take care of a whole lot of migrants abruptly resigned Friday after he admitted to mendacity about his instructional file and as DocGo has come beneath scrutiny for its $432 million no-bid contract with the town.
Anthony Capone’s resignation got here after the Albany Instances Union reported earlier within the day that Capone had lied about having a graduate diploma in synthetic intelligence from Clarkson College. The college advised the paper that Capone had by no means attended the college.
Capone later admitted to the paper he had by no means earned a graduate diploma from any establishment of studying.
“I take full accountability and am making fast corrections to all official bios, profiles and some other supplies the place this incorrect info seems,” he had mentioned in an announcement.
The corporate confirmed Capone’s resignation Friday in a submitting with the U.S. Securities and Trade Fee, which mentioned the corporate’s president and chief working officer, Lee Bienstock, had been appointed the brand new CEO.
The submitting cited “private causes” for his resignation, which was efficient instantly.
DocGo was already beneath scrutiny when its no-bid contract with New York Metropolis got here to mild, prompting questions on what providers the corporate was offering — in addition to the standard of these providers. Neither the corporate nor metropolis officers had been prepared to voluntarily disclose particulars of the contract.
Earlier this month, New York Metropolis Comptroller Brad Lander mentioned there have been “quite a few excellent points and considerations” that prompted him to reject the town’s $432 million no-bid emergency contract with DocGo.
Amongst these considerations, Lander mentioned, was the dearth of “funds element to justify” the worth of the contract and a scarcity of proof the corporate has “the experience to supply the providers it has been contracted for.”
Town comptroller is an independently elected official.
Lander’s resolution to return the contract with out approval to the town’s Division of Housing Preservation and Improvement, which inked the contract with DocGo, cannot scuttle the deal.
Mayor Eric Adams has the authority to override the comptroller and has mentioned, “We’re going to transfer ahead with it.”
The New York Instances reported in August that state Lawyer Normal Letitia James had launched an investigation into the corporate, which has been accused by some migrants and their advocates of offering inaccurate details about their skill to work, get hold of well being care protection and different actions that would threat their skill to realize asylum.
The legal professional common can also be reporting whether or not safety personnel employed by DocGo mistreated and threatened them, together with ordering migrants to not converse with journalists.
DocGo started as a medical providers firm, describing itself on its web site as delivering “high-quality medical care outdoors conventional hospital or clinic settings throughout our service strains: Cell Well being Care, Medical Transportation and Distant Affected person Monitoring/Power Illness Administration. We’re bringing the way forward for healthcare to sufferers’ doorsteps.”
Throughout the pandemic, it contracted with the town to supply COVID-19 testing and vaccinations.
Since then, it has expanded its providers — inexplicably past drugs, critics say, and into the realm of logistical operations to move, home, feed and take care of a whole lot, if not 1000’s, of asylum seekers — lots of them bused outdoors of New York Metropolis to different communities within the state.
The corporate has been attempting to land a profitable contract, valued within the billions of {dollars}, with the federal authorities
