FILE – James Biden arrives at the White House to attend the State Dinner for South Korea, Oct. 13, 2011, in Washington. Republicans are increasingly focused on President Joe Biden’s brother, Jim Biden, as they dig for evidence that could be used for impeachment proceedings. They haven’t turned up any proof of wrongdoing by the president. However, they recently subpoenaed Jim Biden and others as part of their investigations. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari, File)
(Ellwood City, Pa.) (AP) — Republicans are increasingly focused on President Joe Biden’s brother Jim as they dig for evidence that could be used for impeachment proceedings. They haven’t turned up any proof of wrongdoing by the president. But they recently subpoenaed Jim Biden and others as part of their investigations. Most recently, Jim Biden’s work with a failed health care startup called Americore has faced fresh scrutiny from Republicans.
Americore’s collapse has left bitterness in Ellwood City, where Americore briefly operated the Ellwood City Hospital, where medical equipment currently gathers dust and plywood covers broken windows.
At the same time the company was bleeding cash, Jim Biden received $600,000 that former workers believed could have been directed to the struggling hospital.
Within two years of Americore acquiring the facility, the company capped paychecks at $500 and the emergency room’s CT scanner broke. Just days before Christmas in 2019, the last of the hospital’s roughly 200 employees were laid off.
Scott Paglia, a respiratory therapist who worked at the hospital for two decades, remains angry over what happened. He blames Jim Biden for profiting from his hometown’s misfortune and suspects Americore was intent on fraud from the outset.
Jim Biden’s lawyer says Jim Biden “has never involved his brother in his business dealings.”
