A federal judge has dismissed most claims in a lawsuit accusing former UVA Health leaders of putting financial interests ahead of patient safety, but two claims involving alleged retaliation against doctors will continue.

The Oct. 21 ruling by U.S. District Judge Norman Moon dismissed all claims against the University of Virginia and the individual defendants, including former UVA Health CEO Craig Kent, former School of Medicine Dean Melina Kibbe and former UVA Medical Center CEO Wendy Horton, as reported by WTVR. The judge also dismissed claims brought under a federal law used to prosecute organized patterns of wrongdoing, known as the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO. 

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However, two claims alleging that doctors faced retaliation for refusing to participate in improper medical billing practices will move forward against UVA Physicians Group, a separate organization that provides administrative and clinical support to UVA Health providers, WTVR and The Cavalier Daily reported. The claims were brought under federal and Virginia laws that protect people who report alleged fraud involving government funds. 

The lawsuit was originally filed in October 2025 by two spouses of deceased patients and four physicians, according to court documents. It accused Kent and other UVA Health leaders of prioritizing revenue over patient care, including by pressuring doctors to use billing codes that could result in higher charges and hiring surgeons who plaintiffs alleged were not qualified. The physicians also alleged they faced consequences, including demotions and termination, for raising concerns or refusing to participate in the billing practices, The Cavalier Daily reported.

In dismissing the RICO claims, the judge found that the alleged workplace retaliation did not meet the legal requirements for that type of case. The court also found that the financial harm described by the plaintiffs was not directly caused by the alleged scheme.  

The lawsuit comes amid broader concerns about UVA Health’s leadership. Kent resigned as UVA Health CEO in February 2025, following allegations from UVA Health faculty that Kent, Kibbe and other UVA Health leaders created a workplace where doctors feared retaliation for raising concerns about patient safety and clinical decisions. In September 2024, 128 UVA Physicians Group faculty members signed a letter of no confidence calling for Kent and Kibbe’s removal.

Kent’s departure triggered an exodus of UVA Health leaders. In July 2025, UVA announced that Kibbe, too, was leaving to pursue the presidency of the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. And Wendy Horton, then-CEO of UVA Medical Center, also left UVA Health in September 2025 to become senior vice president and president of adult care services at the University of California. Mitchell Rosner, who served as UVA’s interim executive vice president for health affairs for several months, was named UVA Health CEO by UVA’s Board of Visitors in September 2025.

In an Oct. 23, 2026 statement, attorneys representing Kent, Kibbe, Horton and other former and current UVA Health leaders said their clients welcomed the ruling and stood by their leadership of the health system, WTVR reported.

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Hi! I’m Allie, Charlottesville Tomorrow’s Public Institutions Reporter. I'm a corps member with Report for America and part of the Open Campus cohort of journalists who report on higher education.