January 2008: Dr. Mark Midei leaves MidAtlantic Cardiovascular Associates to become a full-time employee of St. Joseph Medical Center, leading a former colleague to vow revenge against him.
April 27, 2009: A MidAtlantic cardiologist informs one of Midei's patients — an St. Joseph's employee — that his stent was unnecessary. The man reports the concern to hospital staff. .
May 12, 2009: St. Joseph relieves Midei from duty after performing an internal review of his work.
November 2009: St. Joseph begins sending letters to roughly 600 of Midei's patients telling them they might have had unneeded stents implanted in their coronary arteries and suggesting that they see a doctor. The warnings lead to dozens of lawsuits against the hospital and Midei.
May 2010: State regulatory documents indicate that Midei was able to avoid St. Joseph's peer review process because, as a department head, he chose which cases would be reviewed.
June 2010: State regulators reviewing billing records determine that other doctors in Maryland have suspiciously high rates of placing stents.
Oct. 22, 2010: Midei files a $60 million lawsuit against St. Joseph alleging that it made him into a "sacrificial lamb" to deflect the attention of civil investigators looking into a separate kickback scheme between the hospital and MidAtlantic.
Nov. 10, 2010: St. Joseph agrees to a $22 million fine to settle kickback claims and repay Medicare funds received for questionable stents placed by Midei.
Dec. 6, 2010: The U.S. Senate Finance Committee releases a report questioning whether stent maker Abbott Laboratories "indirectly encouraged" unnecessary stent procedures.